Plovers in a dangerous clime
Bird watchers devastated after piping plovers’ sandy nest at Hanlan’s Point flooded by storm
It took more than 80 years for piping plovers to resettle in Toronto, but only one rain-soaked night to flood their nest.
Bird watchers and nature lovers were aflutter with news that two of the endangered species had nested and laid eggs on Hanlan’s Point Beach at the end of May.
The last time piping plovers were seen making their home in Toronto was June 1934.
Authorities fenced off the part of the beach where the shorebirds had made their nest — a small depression in the sand decorated with shell fragments and pebbles.
The morning of June 23, after an overnight thunderstorm, volunteers found the nest underwater, said Karen McDonald, a project manager at Toronto and Region Conservation Authority.
“I was devastated,” she said. “We were so close. We were about a week away from hatching. So many people had banded together with a collective effort to try and protect these birds.
“(It was) a momentous occasion after an 81-year absence — only for weather to stymie all of our efforts.”
Some are hoping the birds will rebuild their nest, but the chances of that “are slim to none” because of the lousy weather, McDonald said.
The nest was abandoned after being submerged in floodwaters for at least several hours. Without the necessary oxygen, the developing embryos in the eggs couldn’t survive.
The plovers, which resemble small gulls, haven’t been seen in Toronto since last Wednesday.
Bob Kortright, a birdwatcher and former president of the Toronto Field Naturalists, said piping plovers tend to go back to where they were born to raise a family.
“If it had been successful, I think it would been the first of many nestings in that area,” he said.
The piping plover has been designated endangered or at risk of extinction since 1985. Only about 8,000 are thought to remain in the wild in North America. They were absent from the Great Lakes beaches until 2007, when some were sighted at Wasaga and Sauble.
“I don’t think anyone really thought piping plovers would return to Toronto,” said McDonald.
It’s not all bad news though, she said. The fact that the birds set up camp on the Toronto Islands suggests that conservation efforts in Canada and the U.S. are having some success. It also shows that some urban areas are still hospitable enough to receive endangered species.
“Fingers crossed that they will return next year.”