Endangered P.E.I. plovers saved by pizza pan

A span of concerned piping plovers can thank Parks Canada and a pizza vessel for saving their family.

The birds had picked a bad symbol for their nest in a sand — right on a waves line — in P.E.I.’s National Park.

“As a tides were rising, we were seeing that they were removing closer and closer to a eggs,” explained Kerry-Lynn Atkinson, apparatus government officer with Parks Canada.

Kerry-Lynn Atkinson shows how she dug into a silt with a pan. (Laura Meader/CBC )

One day H2O even cleared over a nest.

Parks staff motionless a usually wish for a nest was to pierce it a metre up, divided from a water.  

“We employed a opposite methodology than we’ve ever used in a park,” pronounced Atkinson,. “It enclosed my pizza vessel from home.”

“It only seemed to be a accurate figure and distance that we needed,” pronounced Atkinson.

Experts consulted before move

Atkinson consulted with bird and wildlife experts and had to get special permits to do a move. 

“It was frightful adequate creation a preference to indeed pierce it, it’s a class during risk, these decisions are not done lightly. Many, many specialists are concerned in being means to do something like this,” she said.

Wet silt shows area where nest was being cleared out in Covehead. (Parks Canada)

Atkinson pronounced that many plovers will symbol around a corner of their nests, and she used a pizza vessel to make certain all a lees around a nest was collected up.

“We devised a devise with a pizza vessel and we used and we practiced,” she said.

When it came time to pierce a genuine nest, a adult birds watched on.

“We wanted to have a adults right there circuitously when we did make a move, given we wanted a adults to see what we were doing,” pronounced Atkinson.

‘It worked, it worked!’

It took about 5 mins — staff acted fast to palliate a highlight on a birds.

One staff member kept a eggs protected in a enclosure while Atkinson dug in with a pan. 

“I was jolt when we were doing it,” pronounced Atkinson.

They placed a nest about a metre adult — in a shoal hole they had prepared.  

The adult birds supposed a new plcae and were behind on a eggs about 3 mins later. 

One of a adult birds with a final of 3 chicks that hatched from a nest. (Parks Canada)

“We were so vehement to see that adult come behind to a nest and lay down and start incubating right away,” pronounced Atkinson.

“We were high fiving any other on a beach, we were so excited, it worked, it worked!” She recalled. 

All 3 chicks fledged

The eggs successfully hatched around a finish of Jul and by mid-August a birds were strictly fledglings, with adequate feathers to fly. 

“We fledged all 3 chicks, so flattering exciting,” she said.

Atkinson now keeps a pizza vessel in her office. 

“It was rare, it was opposite for a park and thank goodness it worked out well.”

One of a chicks that successfully hatched from a re-located nest. (Parks Canada)

Every plover matters

Plover numbers in P.E.I are during a lowest indicate they’ve been given a census of a birds began in 1991. 

Birds are counted each year during a commencement of a deteriorate in June. 

Only 48 birds were counted by Parks Canada and a Island Nature Trust

The normal series is about 60.  

“This is a lowest race numbers on Prince Edward Island,” pronounced Atkinson.

However, she pronounced chicky numbers however have been good. 

“It’s unhappy when we see a adult numbers aren’t that great, though afterwards when we are means to furnish fledglings and you’re vehement about a numbers that you’ve had, it always gives we hope,” pronounced Atkinson.

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Article source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/plovers-birds-parks-canada-pei-pizza-pan-1.4265499?cmp=rss