Draft Baseline Report - Least Turn and Piping Plover Section

• Description: Prepared for the Platte River Cooperative Agreement ‎(aka Platte River Recovery Implementation Program [PRRIP])‎
• State: CO
• State: NE
• State: WY
• Basin: South Platte
• Water Division: 1
• Date: 7/3/2002
• Title: Draft Baseline Report, Least Tern and Piping Plover Section
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

Unmanaged sandpits: From 1994 to 1997 a total of 125 least tern nests were monitored
on unmanaged pits. Nest success was 38 %. Fifty -three percent of all hatched chicks
survived to fledging (Jenniges and Plettner 1999).
Bluehole Pit near Elm Creek was not managed but monitored in 1994 and 1995, and then
managed in 1996 and 1997. During 1994 and 1995 there were 20 least tern nests with a
success rate of 40 %. A total of 18 chicks hatched and 4 survived to fledging (Jenniges
and Plettner 1999).
During 1996 and 1997 predator fences were installed and predator removal was
implemented. During this time period there were 18 least tern nests with a success rate of
94 %. A total of 44 chicks hatched, and 40 survived to fledging (Jenniges and Plettner
1999).
Piping Plover Mortality
Riverine
From 1985 through 1990 failures in 61% of the unsuccessful piping plover nests were
due to flooding, and 19% due to predation (Lingle 1993a, Lingle 1993b).
Artificial islands
From 1991 to 1997 eighteen piping plover nests were monitored on three islands. Eight
of the 18 nests hatched for a nest success of 44 %. The eight successful nests hatched a
total of 21 chicks. Of these, 13 fledged for a fledge ratio of 0.72 chicks per nest.
Predation caused 22% of nest loss for piping plovers on the islands, unknown causes
22 %, abandonment 6 %, and cattle 6% ( Plettner and Jenniges 1999).
Habitat Characteristics
Vegetative Cover
Field research along the Platte River in 1988 surveyed and examined least tern and piping
plover riverine habitat using ground transects and aerial videography (Ziewitz et al.
1992). Aerial videography of the central Platte River indicated that moderately vegetated
sandbars and sandbars only slightly exposed above water were common. Areas of higher
and less vegetated areas were rare (Ziewitz et al. 1992).
Vegetative characteristics of habitat surrounding least tern and piping plover nests along
the Platte River between Lexington and Grand Island in 1979 were determined using
square meter quadrats positioned over each nest to quantify percent cover and vegetative
composition. Faanes (1983) found that the bare ground percentage for least terns (n =17)
was 89.1 %, and for piping plovers (n =37) was 79.4% (Faanes 1983). According to
Faanes (1983) the values for parameters of vegetation frequency of occurrence by
class /percent plant cover by class and density of woody vegetation by species that piping
plovers tolerate sites with more vegetation surrounding them than do terns. Wilson
Draft Baseline Report, July 2002
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