Since 1957 the Piping Plover has been visiting Oklahoma. Its first eBird recorded sighting was at Moffett Bottoms in Sequoyah County. Expanding over the years, this led to multiple reports in 2018, including its first appearance at Meridian Technology Ponds on 04-25-18 in Stillwater. Its first occurence on The Panhandle was in 1995 at Optima Reservoir.
Since there is a large breeding cluster just north of Oklahoma and into the Boreal Forest area, it is not unusual that the most northern birds make a short pit stop in various locations within Oklahoma. Migration begins in August for some of the plovers, and by mid-September, most of them are in their winter range, which is the Caribbean, the south Atlantic coast, and the Gulf of Mexico.
In the 1900s, this little shorebird suffered the effects of the millinery trade. Then in the 1940s, the species rebounded, only to be knocked down again after World War II. Fortunately for many species, the Migratory Treaty Bird Act of 1918, and the subsequent Endangered Species Act of 1986 afforded them a much better chance on the east coast.
Piping Plover
wildlife.ohiodnr.gov
This wee plover was named for its most plaintive whistle, sharing a beach habitat with the Least Tern, Wilson's Plover, and the Black Skimmer. Nesting in scrapes like many shorebirds, the adult modus operandi is the broken wing display to avert danger to themselves. Plover chicks resemble cotton balls on legs, and have also been compared to wind-up toys.
The only way to tell the adult male from he female is the fact that he has a thicker chest band than the female during breeding season. They blend very well with sandy beaches, so if the bird is on the move, it will sooner be observed than the stationary example.
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