I have discovered I really love Plovers. Not just our Semipalmated Plovers that nest on the rehab pads, but I also really like the other two plovers we see up here, Black-bellied Plover and American Golden-plover. They are both very striking birds, and some of the larger shorebird species that breed here. Last year we saw Golden-plover nuggets and this year we found a nest off one of our rehab pads. Sadly, that nest appears to have failed earlier in the season. But, in the words of Professor Farnsworth, "Good news everybody!" I have found a golden-plover nest ON a rehab pad! Mobil WZ has proved over and over that it is quite the site and it has delivered, again!
Below are pictures comparing the plover nest we found near a site, and the one on Mobil WZ.
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| Nest on undisturbed tundra. |
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| Nest on Mobil WZ! |
In other news, lots of babies everywhere!
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| Semipalmated Sandpiper babes. |
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| Stilt Sandpiper babes. |
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| Stilt babe. So fluffy, I couldn't resist! |
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| Awww, so sweet! |
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| Snow Bunting babes. Cute, but also ugly... |
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| Semipalmated Plover babes! Our second nest on Mobil WZ to hatch! |
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| Greater White-fronted Goose babes. This is the nest on our rehab pad! |
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| Goose cuddle pile. |
With all this baby activity, things are starting to slow down. Just today I realized we have less than 3 weeks left here! It is a little bittersweet, but I am getting pretty excited to be heading home soon.
There is still lots of work to do but I will have some more free time to try to write some more posts. This week we have been asked to present some information on the birds up here for some oilfield workers that have some interactions with some of the species here, which is neat, but a little nerve-wracking.
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