One of the dotterel chicks that was hatched at Northland’s Sandy Bay has taken to the air, exciting locals who have been keeping an eye on the two chicks. Photo / Malcolm Pullman
One of the dotterel chicks that was hatched at Northland’s Sandy Bay has taken to the air, exciting locals who have been keeping an eye on the two chicks. Photo / Malcolm Pullman
Two dotterel chicks nesting precariously on a popular Northland beach have taken to the air, thanks in part to the efforts of locals to protect their nest.
Excitement at finding three New Zealand dotterel eggs in a nest at Whangārei’s Sandy Bay in November was tempered after one of the chicks was found dead in early January, after they hatched on December 28. Despite the death, residents were delighted the endangered birds were still nesting on the east coast beach and budding ornithologists have been keeping a close eye on their development.
Gould contacted another coast resident, Malcolm Pullman, and, realising the risk to the nest (it is basically a hollow in the sand with no protection), the pair built up a fence around it and put up warning signs letting people know about the nest and the dangers to the eggs and subsequent chicks.
They have been keeping an eye on the chicks and this week the fledglings took to the air for the first time, a giant step for their chances of surviving and later breeding to increase the species’ chances of thriving.
“It’s amazing, really. It’s just incredible that they have survived to that stage, given the dangers. I follow a few [dotterel nesting sites] around the country and at Waiwera [near Orewa] they are have a big issue with cats and people have been camping out overnight to protect those chicks from cats. That shows just how vulnerable they are to introduced pests,” Gould said.
One of the dotterel chicks that was hatched at Northland’s Sandy Bay has taken to the air, exciting locals who have been keeping an eye on the two chicks. Photo / Malcolm Pullman
“So to have our two make it through is absolutely brilliant. I believe they come back to the same beach to breed so if that’s the case we’ve just doubled our Sandy Bay breeding dotterels - so that’s great.”
He said this was just like human habitation around the beach, with generations of locals returning to the beach year after year with their offspring.
“At first the two chicks stuck together like glue, but in recent days you saw one at one end of the beach with one parent and the other at the other end with the other parent. They are quite independent now.”
Gould said people had respected the barrier they put up around the nest and he had no doubt that fencing the nest off when it was discovered and putting up warning signs saved it, and the eggs, from destruction.
The second Sandy Bay dotterel chick that has now fully fledged. Photo / Malcolm Pullman
“Having three eggs in a nest that’s basically just a hollow in the middle of the beach during the busy holiday season, they wouldn’t have lasted a week. Now it’s really good to see these two doing so well.”
He said the excellent efforts of the Tutukaka Land Care group in trapping predators in the area laid the groundwork for the nest and chicks to survive by getting rid of predators such as stoats.
