Plovers All Over

We have made it back to the Springs this arvo just in time for Debbie to make a 2:00pm meeting. Phew. I think it must be nap time by now but first I have had alook at the photos.  The plover action from yesterday is best seen on the video. One of their strategies is to remain perfectly still and all aligned in the same direction. You could walk passed and easily not see them.  I also have photo looking out at the  Moyne River from the neighbours house where we went in for coffee. Its amazing some of this gear doesn't break, as in an 1860's cottage, they did not make room for laptop/phone/watch/computer charging stations. I dropped a hard drive at one stage and the phone was covered in fine sand but they kept going.

Plover Education

Had a chat to the Plover man today about the latest plover news.  There have been 22 nesting pairs this year with successful hatchings of one or two chicks however for the first 21 of those nests all have been killed.  The three killers are dogs, foxes and wave inundation.  The 22nd and most likely last of the season offspring, will hatch any day.  Last year only two chicks survived and the year before only one chick made it.

Plover John and six new plover houses

Collendina Report No 156

It needs to be recorded that a 30 degree day was achieved on 20/04/2016.  This was a as good a beach day as you could expect in the middle of summer.  Except when we went for a wander down the beach and our stuff was raided and the theft of my buttered roll was detected.  Yesterday's inductee Max was just 50 metres away. Then there was the tradie who was supposed to be working on someone's van but said it was too good on the beach so just happened to have his surf board in the back with his tools. Then there was the metal detective who did look a bit hungry, sluicing that wand of his from side to side then side to side again. He seemed to be pocketing stuff from time to time. Like a gold ring it looked like but not a sandwich.  Not sure if it has a sandwich mode anyway in order to detect sandwiches. Then there was Mike the nudist who went past on his bike. But we did find the culprit in the end. I managed to get his mug shot below.

Suspicious tradies

Sandwich Mode Apparatus

Running Plovers

Gull the thief

Collendina Report No 243

The van update continues. I am typing this from workstation No2 which also doubles as the new bench for the TV.  The curtains are demanding the greatest time with much putting up, taking down, pinning, putting up , taking down, cutting, putting up, taking down, sewing and final putting up. Then you do it all again for the other half.
The plovers are taking over the beach completely. There are now weekly updates on progress, so far of the three nearby chicks, one died in the first week but two are still ok.



Blog Central

Plover City

Plover Update

 

Happy Leap Year

I wonder how many people were born today. No birthday party for another four years!  The Collendina renos are continuing. We now have three new blinds as well as blockout curtains across the door.  The new cabinet of drawers was supposed to form part of the desk but is too high so they will become a  storage drawer.  Out on the beach the plovers are spawning again, this time at the very bottom of our access steps.  This was a week ago but already they have moved 500 metres away. More evidence that plovers can't read.

It's curtain's for you

Cabinet Maker

Tiny Plovers now

Why did the plover chicks move away from the sign?  ..... to get to the other side (of the beach).

Plovers can't read

Yes the Plovers have scurried further down the beach. My theory is that often after hatching the family will move and congregate with other plovers for greater numbers. We have counted 10 plovers now as far down as first rock.  That means the old nest site next to our spot on the beach has been abandoned. However a self styled plover policewoman accused us of stomping on plover nesting sites, took our photo and was most indignant that we should be next to the plover fence.  The next day the real plover police arrived and agreed with our assessment and then dismantled the fence.

Fence No More

Bird Brain

Plover Report

Those plovers are crowding the beach. The spot we have been using on the sand has been fenced to keep us out because plovers are nesting. Those little scurrying  fur balls. Mind you I have not seen any of them in this fenced area yet. We have gotten the digital radio going via the DAB channels however it seems to get interference when you walk nearby. We have got the Chemist Warehouse station going so far where every add is about Chemist stuff.

Plover fences

Plovers Return

The Plover signs have gone back up although I have only seen two plovers so far. Last night there were whippet like dogs almost catching birds but not quite. Dogs have to be on a leash at all times from now. We tried the Finska in soft sand yesterday. This severely restricts the migration of the pins. High tide and strong wind was not the ideal conditions to try.

Nest D - fourth nest ?

Soft Sand Finska

Plover Record Broken.

You'll never guess how many Plovers are on the loose now. I think the most we had ever seen previously was 12. I have photographic evidence of 21 plovers dominating the beach scape and attacking many small insects.  This would have to be one of the latest season beach days we have had being April 15.

Count em! How many Plovers on the Prowl?