View range map of Snowy Plover

The Snowy Plover is a small (6.25 inches) ground nesting shore bird, of coastal beaches, mudflats and inland salt lakes. The birds breed along the pacific coast and the Gulf Coast, and also inland at Salton Sea in eastern California and inland habitats in Utah, Arizona and Nevada. Some coastal populations are resident year round. Northern inland populations migrate to the Gulf Coast states and South America for the winter. A social species outside the breeding season, Snowy Plovers form large flocks at winter feeding locations. Snowy Plovers forage on the shore line for insects, mollusks, crustaceans and fish. Typical of plovers, the birds run along the shore and grab prey as the tide recedes. Snowy Plovers also probe the shore for prey, and are known to feed both during the day and at night. Both monogamous and polygamous mating systems exit within the species. Females may desert their nest and partner immediately after hatching of the chicks, to seek a new mate and re-nest. Two or three clutches may be raised in a single year. Breeding takes place on sandy beaches. The nest is a scrape in the ground, which the male Snowy Plover may make several of during courtship. Both birds help to construct the nest, lining it with twigs and other materials. The female lays 2-3 buff eggs, which both parents incubate for a period of about 27 days. In hot locations, the birds will also cool the eggs by wetting their breast feathers before standing over the eggs. The chicks are precocial and fledge after about 30 days. They feed themselves from hatching, but the parents lead them to food, and defend them. Snowy Plovers use distraction displays, such as assuming a "broken wing" position, when predators such as ravens, crows, foxes and skunks, threaten their chicks. If the female, or sometimes the male deserts, the other parent will care for the chicks until fledging and then sometimes re-nest also. About 18,000 Snowy Plovers breed in the United States and Mexico. The species is threatened by degradation of beach habitat due to recreational beach use. Development of beach front property, recreational vehicle use, and disturbance of nests by foot traffic and dogs are serious threats to the future survival of beach nesting species such as the Snowy Plover. The Snowy Plover has been listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act since 1993. Closing of beaches during the breeding season along the Pacific coast has resulted in improved nesting success.

View range map of Willet

The Willet is a large (15 inches tall), long legged sandpiper with conspicuous white wing patches revealed as it takes flight. There are two subspecies with different vocalizations, one occupying the east coast and the other the west coast of North America. Prairies, grasslands and agricultural fields adjacent to wetland habitats such as marshes, lake shores, bays and river banks, on the coast and sometimes the interior of the United States and Canada are used by this species during the breeding season. Northern birds are long distance nocturnal migrants, travelling to South America to winter. Some, more southern birds are resident year round. Willets forage both during the day and at night, for insects, crustaceans and mollusks. The birds probe for food along the shore line or capture it in the ebb of the waves. Willets are semi-colonial nesters. The birds generally pair for life and begin breeding in their third to fifth year. They usually return to the same breeding grounds each year. The male performs a courtship flight and the female joins him in a vocal duet. The female chooses the nest site on an exposed beach or mudflat. The male makes several scrapes in the ground and she chooses one and the pair line it with grasses. The pair may defend separate nesting and feeding territories, or only the nest. The eggs are olive with brown markings and the clutch consists of 3-4. Both parents incubate the eggs for a period of approximately 25 days, with the female usually on the nest during the day and the male at night. The chicks are precocial and follow their parents to food. Both parents brood and defend the chicks, and groups of Willets often mob predators. The female abandons the chicks after 2-3 weeks, the male continuing to care for them for a further two weeks. Both birds leave for the migration staging area before the chicks fledge. Market hunting and egging reduced Willet numbers in the east to only a remnant population by the 1890s. In the west, Willets suffered habitat loss as marshes were drained and grassland was converted for settlement and agriculture. Eastern populations have recolonized their former range following protection under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The greatest threats to Willets are now loss of native grassland and wetland habitats, human disturbance, pollution and collision with manmade objects during migration.

View range map of California Gull

The California Gull is unusual because it inhabits interior lakes of the western United States and Canada, and only uses coastal ocean habitats along the Pacific coast during the winter. This medium sized gull, (21 inches long) has distinctive black and red bill markings, and is a common sight in its winter range. California Gulls are opportunistic feeders and will exploit any resource available depending on the location of their colony. In grassy fields the birds forage for insects, mice and other small prey. They will eat fish and other marine life during the winter and will also scavenge at garbage dumps and other resources provided by humans. Nesting takes place in large colonies on islands and sandy shores of lakes. At Great Salt Lake in Utah, colonies of California Gulls may exceed 43,000 birds. Pairs form either on arrival at the colony or before leaving the wintering grounds. Some pairs remain together through successive breeding seasons. The pair constructs a nest of twigs, weeds and feathers in a scrape on the ground. Only the space around the nest is defended, usually this territory is only 2-3ft from the adjacent nest. The female lays 2-3 brown/ gray eggs which the pair will incubate for 23-27 days. The chicks are precocial leaving the nest after 3-4 days. They fledge after about 45 days, spending their time on the lake shore, where their parents continue to feed them, until about 60 days after hatching. Both parents feed the chicks by regurgitation, returning with increasing frequency to feed the chicks as they grow and demand ever greater meals. Immature California Gulls depart the breeding colony together forming large groups feeding on the coast. They will usually remain at the wintering grounds until their third year of life, when they will breed for the first time. As a colonial nester, dependent on good habitat conditions at the colony site, the California Gull in vulnerable to disturbance and degradation of habitat. However, the species is currently secure.