About 50 volunteers turned up last Thursday evening for a meeting at Nancy Island, offering their services to monitor the endangered Piping Plovers nesting at Beach Area 1.
Exclosures have been erected toward the eastern end of the main beach area to protect two nests where the first chicks are expected to hatch this week.
The outer snow fence prevents human and dog entry while the inner wire "hockey net" area allows the birds to fly in and out of the nesting area while preventing entry of gulls and other wild predators.
The dog beach has been relocated to the river side of the Beach Area 1 peninsula.
Wasaga Beach Provincial Park Superintendent John Fisher said Ontario Parks and Ministry of Natural Resources officials try to keep restrictions to a minimum to build a positive rapport with members of the public.
Coordinating this year's program, in which volunteers educate the public about the shorebirds and keep an eye out for predators, is Kim Jaxa-Debicki.
She said the most critical time for the chicks is after they hatch and are moving about to find food before they are able to fly away from predators.
The volunteers heard that there are now an estimated 55 to 60 breeding pairs around the Great Lakes, largely due to the efforts of volunteers in Michigan and Ontario.
The one surviving chick from last year at Wasaga Beach is now nesting in Michigan.
Three Piping Plovers, in addition to the two nesting pairs, have been spotted in the area but apparently are still checking out the mating and real estate opportunities.
The birds' re-appearance has occurred over the past few years following a 30-year period in which none were sighted along Great Lakes shores.
The meeting heard that law protects the birds and anyone harming them is subject to a fine of up to $250,000 and/or a one-year jail sentence.
Superintendent Fisher said, "we have a legal obligation to provide protection" for these birds.
Jaxa-Debicki said the Piping Plovers seek wide-open, flat beaches with a little vegetation - a perfect description of Beach Area 1. They scurry along the shoreline in search of insects, worms and tiny crustaceans.
The birds are small and difficult to spot, until they move, as their backs are the colour of dry sand.
Jaxa-Debicki told the gathering that habitat loss is the number one reason for plovers being endangered. Their most common predators are gulls, dogs and raccoons.
While predation is normal, she said, subsidized predators (wild animals fed by humans) can create an imbalance when they learn to seek easy meals in built up areas.
Anyone wishing to become a Piping Plover Guardian is encouraged to call the park office at 429-2516 and ask for Kim.
