Semipalmated Plover
Semipalmated PloverCharadrius semipalmatusby Helena Ives
Where and when to find them: Semipalmated Plovers have recently reappeared on Connecticut beaches, right on time at the beginning of their fall migration.
Named for their semi-webbed toes, which allow them to walk on different substrates, Semipalmated Plovers can be found for the next several months foraging for insects and other invertebrates on mudflats and beaches while they migrate from their nesting territory on Arctic beaches. They winter on the southern perimeter of North America and travel an average of 3,000 miles during both fall and spring migration.
The best places to look in Connecticut include the Coastal Center at Milford Point, Hammonasset Beach State Park, Sandy Point in West Haven, and Greenwich Point Park, although they are common enough so that it’s worth keeping your eyes open for them any time you go to the beach.
These relatives of the Killdeer and Piping Plover (Charadriidae family) are typically seen from late March through late May, and then during the longer fall migration, from mid July through early October, with an occasional non-breeding adult spending the summer in New England.
Both migrations typically begin with breeding and molting adults and conclude with juveniles and first/second year birds.
How to find them: Semipalmated Plovers can usually be found mingling in large groups with other migratory shorebirds, including Semipalmated Sandpipers, Least Sandpipers, Ruddy Turnstones, and Piping Plovers.
Similar in size and markings to Piping Plovers, Semipalmated Plovers can be distinguished by their dark brown body plumage, the black band around their eye and forehead, and their complete black breast band (usually broken in Piping Plovers).
Although Semipalmated Plovers are generally quiet while foraging on shore, they can be identified by their flight call — a short and husky chu-WEE or too-ee, with other variations possible.
Conservation status: After their populations were crucially depleted in the late 1800’s due to unrestricted hunting and shooting, Semipalmated Plover populations recovered quickly and are now listed as “Least Concern” on the IUCN Red list and are widespread across their territories in North America.
This week’s Bird Finder is written by Helena Ives, who is working for us this summer monitoring birds for the Audubon Alliance for Coastal Waterbirds. Helena is a senior at the University of Connecticut, majoring in natural resources with a concentration in wildlife conservation.
Photos by Patrick Comins
