Day: June 27, 2019

THANK YOU TO THE SAINT PETER’S FIESTA BEAUTIFUL NOVENA LADIES

Posted on by Kim Smith

Thank you to the Fiesta Novena Ladies for all they do to create the beautiful novena to Saint Peter.

Faye Quinlan, Joanne Aiello, Caryn Ryder, Jean Linquata, Rosie Verga, Anne Sanfilippo, and Grace Cusumano

They are also superb cake testers, and lots of fun ❤

The delicious Buona Festa cakes served the last night of the novena are courtesy of Caffe Sicilia

 

HAPPINESS IS KNOWING ALL YOUR BABIES ARE SAFE AND TUCKED IN FOR THE NIGHT

Posted on by Kim Smith

Our chicks are 26 days old today. We’ve nearly made it to the four-week-old milestone!

Doesn’t Papa look content? 🙂

Although state guidelines say piping Plover chicks have fledged by 25 days, that simply is not the case with our chicks. They cannot fly more than a few feet and are still swimming across the creek to the other side (about ten feet wide at mid-tide). If they could fly across, they would.

Every morning I find the chicks thermoregulating under Mom or Dad. Throughout the day, the parents guide the chicks up and down the beach to the most safe locations for foraging. And in the evening, they return to the protected area to snuggle under Mom or Dad, spending the night as a family unit.

The Federal guidelines are much more accurate when comparing my own observations and documentation. USFWS mandates protection up to 35 days. We PiPl monitors are going with protecting our family to 35 days, at five weeks old.

Thank you to all our wonderful Piping Plover volunteer monitors. Without a doubt, our chicks would not have made it this far if not for your time, patience, and dedication.

THE JOHNSON FAMILY OF YOUNG CONSERVATIONISTS!

Posted on by Kim Smith

Thank you to the Johnson Family of Wakefield and Connecticut for their interest in learning about the Piping Plovers and for giving them the space they needed when trying to get to the creek.

Volunteer monitor Laurie Sawin spent time with the family on Wednesday, sharing her binoculars and teaching the young conservation-minded kids all about Piping Plovers and their habitat. The kids were so interested and considerate of the birds, it was a joy to meet them!

People love the portable new signs, both beach goers and the volunteer monitors. The signs provide an opportunity for beach guests to ask questions and learn about the PiPls, and they also provide a reference for the monitors. Many thanks to volunteer monitor Heather Hall for sharing a photo online of the signs used at PiPl protected areas in Ontario.

Our PiPl family are finding lots of fat sea worms at the creek.