Further to my holiday period "postings from Margaret River, WA", an
interesting event here over the past days has involved a Red-capped Plover
nesting on a popular beach (in the midst of the holiday throngs). At the
mouth of the Margaret River, a famous local surfing spot, the river in
summer is separated from the ocean by a sandy bar, this year some 75 metres
across. This is a popular spot for surfers, swimmers and families, and
many walk across the bar sightseeing and to swim in both the ocean and the
river.
In the middle of this thoroughfare a female RCP chose to lay 2 eggs and
begin incubating them. With each passing beach-goer it left the "nest" and
engaged in a "broken-wing" distraction display, leaving the well-camouflaged
eggs to the vagaries of unwary feet and other obvious risks. The sand
surrounding the eggs was heavily indented with footprints and the future
looked gloomy, particularly as few of the beach-goers were aware of the
presence of either the bird or its eggs.
In spite of concerns about the increased risks associated with making the
bird more visible we nonetheless felt that some protection might give this
rather unwise bird a fighting chance, at least to hatch a chick or two, and
just maybe to rear them successfully (realising however that in biological
terms it was hardly a high-priority conservation issue). We also figured
that it might acquaint a few more visitors (and locals too) with the
bird-life literally on their (beach) doorstep.
A handful of bamboo garden stakes, some coloured string and a few pieces of
orange plastic tape were used to demarcate a "no-go zone" (diameter about 2
metres) around the brooding bird.
Two days later and the bird thrives! The sand within the "no-go zone" is
pristine while that outside the barrier is even more pocked than before -
obviously interest in this somewhat unusual event is fairly high.
Someone has placed a quite large piece of driftwood upwind of the sitting
bird and there she is, apparently untroubled by either the passing traffic
or the now more frequent observers, proceeding with the process of incubation.
I was able to approach to the edge of the "roped-off" area (only 1 metre
from the sitting bird) without her feeling the need either to move or to
attempt to distract me. She seems to have learned quickly that this little
piece of beach is now safe from the passers-by.
To be able to walk up to within 1 metre of a wild shore-bird, indeed to sit
down beside it and observe it at such close quarters (no binoculars needed
of course), is rather remarkable.
Whether this unusual breeding attempt will be rewarded or not remains to be
seen (unfortunately I will be leaving in 2 days - but I'm afraid I can't be
particularly optimistic), but it is certainly an interesting experience - at
least from the outside looking in.
Richard Nowotny
From: Dr Richard Nowotny
Melbourne, Australia
Tel. (w) 61-3-9214.1420
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