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theses

Piping Plovers (Charadrius melodus) are federally threatened under the Endangered Species Act. These threatened shorebirds breed on New Jersey’s beaches from April to August annually. They face many threats during this time, including habitat loss and human disturbance. One major threat to Piping Plovers is nest predation by a suite of predators, causing approximately half of nest losses annually. Understanding the fate of nests can help better direct Piping Plover management. The objectives of my research were to 1. Determine the composition and level of occurrence of predators in each site and island in New Jersey between the years 2005-2013, 2. To understand if predator type and frequency change throughout the nesting season and throughout the age of the nest or across years and 3. To use this information to create a practical training manual and guide to common predators to better inform managers, biologists, and field personnel conducting nest fate assessments. Results show that some predators, such as Eastern Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes), Northern Raccoon (Procyon lotor), Ghost Crabs (Ocypode quadrata), crow (Corvus) and gull (Larus) species occurred most often nearby the nest (66%), and caused 88% of nest losses. The highest levels of predators occurred during peak Piping Plover hatching, but nests were most vulnerable to predation during the first seven days of nest initiation. Each major predator had different activity timelines and geographical distribution throughout the state of New Jersey. Results suggests that different management strategies should be considered for each nesting area and predator type.

ETD_8049

M.S.

Includes bibliographical references

by Allison Anholt

doi:10.7282/T37W6FZF

ETD graduate

The author owns the copyright to this work.