Snowy Plovers Find a Home

Snowy Plovers Find a Home. . Marker Once: , Once plentiful on California beaches, western snowy plovers now face extinction due to habitat loss from coastal development and beach recreation. Fortunately, dry salt ponds offer these sparrow-sized shorebirds an alternative place to nest, raise young, and forage - remote from human disturbance. The former salt evaporation pond in front of you is being managed to provide optimum conditions for snowy plover nesting success., Hawks and other avian predators take a heavy toll on plover chicks. Researchers have scattered oyster shells across these salt flats to see if the added camouflage and cover increase chick survival. , What are those wooden structures? , This pond preserves historic remnants of wind-powered Archimedes screw pumps. The Oliver Salt Company built them in the late 1800s to move salt water between evaporation ponds. , Marker Two: , A colorful Buffet for Hungry Waterbirds , What color is the water in front of you? Salt ponds change color as water evaporates and salinity increases, allowing different microorganisms to thrive. Blue-green water indicates low salinity, while green, yellows, and reds signal increasing levels of saltiness. When pond water reaches three times the salinity of baywater, populations of brine shrimp and other invertebrates skyrocket. This rich biomass of prey feeds thousands of shorebirds, gulls and other waterbirds., Images: , Who Dyed Here? Increasing salinity causes a type of green algae to release a red pigment. , Salty Snacks for Bids on the Go. Brine shrimp and other salt pond invertebrates provide crucial nutrition for migrating shorebirds. Managing the saltiness of pond water here at Eden Landing Ecological Reserve makes these important water bird foods more available.