It may interest some people to know that the winter Snowy Plover surveys
we conduct for the coast of Washington and Oregon had record tying
numbers - 439 individuals between the two states, tying 2017 winter
surveys. 359 were counted in Oregon. Of most interest to Oregon
birders is the fact that we had nice wintering flocks at Clatsop (19),
two locations in Tillamook (17 and 14), two locations in Lincoln (23 and
36), two locations in Lane, three in Douglas, and three in Coos Cty.
We had no reports from Curry, but earlier in the season at least 6 were
known to be by Otter Point north of Gold Beach, and this beach was not
surveyed so plovers may have wintered there also. So in 2018 we had
breeding in every coastal Oregon Cty, and in winter we also had plovers
in every county (except not confirmed in Curry). And based on the
numbers, it appears we have well established plover wintering grounds up
and down the coast after several decades of plovers not being present in
these areas. The good news for Oregon birders, especially county
birders, is your chances of ticking Snowy Plover on your lists is rather
quite excellent these days. With that said, please remember, they are
still on the Endangered Species List and therefore are protected under
state and federal laws, so please be sensitive about activities around
the birds especially since in winter they have little to no designated
protected areas and there are less restrictions on recreational
activities - it is up to us to give them the space they need especially
since we are aware of the plovers while most recreationists are not.
Cheers
Dave Lauten
Oregon Biodiversity Information Center
Institute for Natural Resources
Portland State Univ
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