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The Snowy Plover in Southeastern Oregon and Western Nevada

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The Snowy Plover in Southeastern Oregon and Western Nevada j. Field Ornithol., 59(1):13-21 THE SNOWY PLOVER IN SOUTHEASTERN OREGON AND WESTERN NEVADA STEVEN G. HERMAN Malheur Bird Observatory and The EvergreenState College Olympia, Washington98505 USA JOHN B. BuLgER Divisionof EnvironmentalStudies Universityof California Davis, California95616 USA JOSEPHB. BUCHANAN ldO9 W. Seventh Avenue Olympia, Washington98501 USA Abstract.--In 1980, we searchedfor SnowyPlovers (Charadrius alexandrinus) in an area of 130,000km 2 in southeasternOregon and westernNevada. We found2016 adult Snowy Ploversat 23 sites.Plovers were consistentlyassociated with water and occurredon bareor sparselyvegetated alkaline substrates.We found 72 nests;nesting was documentedat all but 3 sites.One hundredand fifty-four broodswere foundand broodsize averaged 2.4 in youngerbroods, 1.6 in older broods.In the 1980s,rising water levelsin the northernGreat Basin eliminatedmuch Snowy Plover nestinghabitat. EL PLAYERO CHARADRIUS ALEXANDRINUS EN LA PARTE SURESTE DE OREGON Y EL OESTE DE NEVADA Resumen.--Duranteel 1980 examinamosun fircade 130,000km 2 en el surestede Oregon y oestede Nevadaen bfisquedadel playeroCharadrius alexandrinus. Encontramos 2016 aves adultasen 23 localidades.Pudimos asociar consistentemente losplayeros con agua y estos aparecieronen sustratosalcalinos desnudos o parcialmentecubiertos con vegetaci6n.En- contramos72 nidos en todas las 1ocalidadesa excepci6nde 3 de (•stas.Un total de 154 parvadasde polluelosfueron localizadas. E1 tamafiopromedio de las parvadasvari6 conla edadde lospolluelos. En avescon edad menor a 15 dias,el tamafiopromedio de la parvada result6ser de 2.4 individuosmientras queen polluelosmayores de 15 diasse redujo a 1.6. Un aumentoen el nivel del aguadurante el 1980 elimin6gran parte del habitaci6nde anidamientode estosplayeros en la Gran Cuencadel notre. Ornithologistshave been remarkably slow to discoverthe patternsof distributionand abundanceexhibited by SnowyPlovers (Charadrius al- exandrinus)in westernNorth America.Interior populationsin Nevada andOregon were especially slow to cometo light (Linsdale1936, Marshall 1969).In the early1970s ornithologists suspected that the SnowyPlover had becomerare overmuch of its rangein North America,and concern aboutits statuswas expressedin severalplaces, including the National AudubonSociety's "Blue List" (seeArbib 1971).Recognizing the dearth of informationon the distributionand abundanceof the species,we censusedSnowy Ploversin southeasternOregon and western Nevada during the spring and summerof 1980. 13 14] S.G. Herman et al. J.Field Ornithol. Winter 1988 STUDY AREA AND METHODS Between21 Apr. and 31 Jul. 1980, we spent 73 d searchingfor, counting,and observingbreeding populations of Snowy Ploversin an area coveringnearly 130,000 km2 of the northwesternGreat Basin (Fig. 1); after completingthe initial surveywork, we gatheredadditional data on 12 d between 1 Aug. and 5 Sep. Working from United StatesGeo- logicalSurvey topographic maps, our own experienceand that of other observers,and the literature, we selectedand checkedapproximately 150 sitesfor suitable habitat and Snowy Plovers.Sites without appropriate habitat were in some cases eliminated from further consideration after we observedthem from the air. Most naturally occurringalkaline ponds and lakes, as well as artificial impoundmentsthat constitutedequivalent habitat, were surveyedon foot. At least two observersworked at each site;as many as 14 additionalpeople assisted us in areaswhere the habitat was extensive.We recordednumbers and age classesof Snowy Plovers at all siteswhere we found them. Most sitesthat supportedplovers were visited at least twice, as were areas with suitable habitat where we failed to find the specieson our initial visit. In all placeswhere Snowy Plovers were present,we attemptedto documentnesting, but we did not always make intensive searches for nests. When nests were found we recorded clutch size and describedthe nesting substrate.When broods were en- counteredwe countedthe number of young and estimatedchick size by comparingwith adults.We gatheredinformation on physicalcharacter- istics,vegetation, and other habitat componentsat all sites. RESULTS We found 2016 adult Snowy Ploversin the study area with 1047 of them at 11 sites in southeasternOregon and 969 at 12 sites in western Nevada (Table 1, seeFig. 1). Candidatesites where neitherSnowy Plovers nor appropriatehabitat were found are listedin an unpublishedreport depositedin the van Tyne Library at the Museumof Zoology,University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109). Sites ranged in elevation from 1180 m to 1681 m. Ploverswere consistentlyassociated with water and occurredon bare or sparselyvegetated alkaline substrates.Grease- wood (Sarcobatusvermiculatus), saltbush (Atriplex spp.), seablite(Sueada spp.),and saltgrass(Distichlis stricta) dominate the vegetationthat grows alongthe marginsof the alkaline bodiesof water that supportedSnowy Plovers.Freshwater lakes and ponds,even those with extensivemudflats or sand beaches,did not support Snowy Ploversin the study area; dry alkali flats were similarly without plovers. SoutheasternOregon.--Of the 1047 ploverswe countedin southeastern Oregon,all but 6 (< 1%) occurredwithin 4 majorinternal drainage basins. Harney Basin supported42% (n = 436) of the total, Lake Abert 33% (n = 345), Summer Lake Basin 18% (n --- 193), and Alvord Basin 6% (n = 67). Harney Lake, where we found400 SnowyPlovers, is filled primarily • BUR%•• •'.•'•HARNEY•'AKE SCHOOLHOUSE LAKE •S O•LKALILAKE UMM•LAKE KEABERT OALVORD HOT SPRINGS ALVORDLAKE LOWER BORAX LAKE •AKEVIEW0RE G 0 N HE VA DA o ALKALI LAKE •0 •o 40 WINNEMUCCA.r• i KILOMETERSMII.-E'$ NUMBER OF ADUI..T SNOWY PLOVERS .•7'-•1.•0 I.•9-.•56 0 6• - I.•,•' 0 LOWERP,-TF,o I 17' -._T,.• 0 /o•UMBOLDT SLOUGH FER•EY S• 0 •10 • )STILLWATER •RE•O •ND B• v WMA.• N.WR FIGURE1. Geographicdistribution of breedingsites and relative abundance of adultSnowy Ploversin southeasternOregon and westernNevada during 1980. 16] S. G.Herman et al. J.Field Ornithol. Winter 1988 TABLE1. Distribution and abundanceof adult SnowyPlovers in southeasternOregon and westernNevada during spring and summer, 1980. Number of Elev. Site adults Date (m) County Lat. L•ng. SoutheasternOregon Harney Lake 400 5 Jun. 1244 Harney 43ø14' 119007' Silver Lake 25 9 Jul. 1257 Harney 43022' 119024' Stinking Lake 9 29 May 1254 Harney 43019' 119021' BacusLake 2 29 Jul. 1248 Harney 43ø16' 118045' Alvord Hot Spring 28 17 Jul. 1222 Harney 42033' 118031' Borax Lakes 24 16 Jul. 1234 Harney 42020' 118036' Alvord Lake 15 16 Jul. 1228 Harney 42023' 118036' Alkali Lake 6 4 Jun. 1306 Lake 42058' 120002' Lake Abert 345 3 Jun. 1297 Lake 42038' 120ø13' SchoolhouseLake 27 15 Jun. 1265 Lake 42058' 120043' Summer Lake 166 15 Jun. 1264 Lake 42050' 120045' Western Nevada Alkali Lake 5 19 May 1681 Washoe 41042' 119051' Lower Pitt-Taylor Res. 12 20 Jun. 1260 Pershing 40038' 118ø16' Stillwater NWR & WMA 344 23 Jun. 1185 Churchill 39037' 118027' Carson SinkI 147 27 Jun. 1180 Churchill 39043' 118041' Carson Lake 144 22 Jun. 1191 Churchill 39019' 118043' Humboldt Slough 4 27 Jun. 1183 Churchill 39050' 118047' Pond A 2 17 26 Jun. 1199 Churchill 39033' 118046' Pond B2 14 26 Jun. 1201 Churchill 39033' 118047' Pond G2 1 27 Jun. 1180 Churchill 39046' 118045' Fernley Sink 126 29 Jun. 1223 Lyon 39038' 119008' Artesia Lake 112 29 Jun. 1386 Lyon 38057' 119017' Walker Lake1 43 28 Jun. 1212 Mineral 38043' 118045' i Incompletesurvey. 2 Not named on U.S.G.S. maps. by overflowfrom Malheur Lake, a large marsh to the east,via a channel that crossesprivate irrigated land. A small amount of water also is con- tributedby Silver and Warm SpringsCreeks, which enter Harney Lake on the west sidethrough the Warm SpringsValley. Streamwaterreaches the lakebed only during years when it is available from other parts of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), either becauseit is excess on thoseparts where it is usedin waterfowl management,or becauseit is not neededto irrigate the private land alongthe channelfrom Malheur Lake. In manyyears the playais essentiallydry by early summer.In dry yearsthe ploversaggregate around a numberof upwellingthermal springs on the playa. These springswere especiallyimportant during 1976-1979. The lake was as full as we have seen it in 1980, and most of the thermal springs were submerged;Snowy Plovers were distributed around the entireplaya perimeter,except for the southwestshore, where densevege- tation bordered the waterline. The 345 Snowy Ploverswe countedat Lake Abert, Lake County, on 3 Jun. constitutedthe secondlargest populationin Oregon. The Che- Vol.59, I•o. I Distributionand Abundance ofSnowy Plovers [ 17 waucan River, which enters Lake Abert at the south end, is the primary sourceof water to this large lake. In yearsof high water, such as 1980, plover habitat is availableonly on the extensivealkali flat on the north and northwestsides of the lake. We found the birds principally alongthe waterline and at two groupsof springsat the north end. Two localitiesin the Summer Lake Basin, in western Lake County, accountedfor 195 Snowy Plovers.Schoolhouse Lake, on the east sideof SummerLake Water ManagementArea (WMA), is part of an extensive alkaline marsh that has formed at the mouth of the Ana River on the north end of the SummerLake playa. We found 27 ploversthere on 15 Jun., the same day we censusedall of Summer Lake. Probably birds move freely between SchoolhouseLake and Summer Lake playa. At SchoolhouseLake, the ploversoccurred primarily on the alkali flats on the east and southwest.The specieshas
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