Events Calendar
Location: Starr King Church, 22577 Bayview Ave, Hayward 94541
Presenter: Catherine (Cat) Burns
Did you know there are only about 200 Western Snowy Plovers left in the Bay Area? Our presenter, Catherine (Cat) Burns will clue us in about the status of this threatened species and the research that the San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory is carrying out to improve Western Snowy Plover recovery. The SFBBO team has conducted routine plover surveys across the region for nearly a decade and works closely with land managers to shape strategies that benefit plovers.
One of the primary challenges to plover recovery, particularly in the Bay Area, is the rapidly increasing population of California Gulls – the population of which has grown in San Francisco Bay from only a few individuals in the early 1980’s to over 50,000 in 2014! Research by SFBBO and others has shown that these gulls prey upon plover eggs and chicks. Regrettably, the impact of these predation events on plovers is likely to increase in the future as gull numbers continue to grow. Cat will share how SFBBO and partners are working to identify management strategies that enable plovers to recover successfully despite the growing gull population.
Catherine (Cat) Burns, Ph.D. is Executive Director at SFBBO. Her Ph.D. research focused on understanding the impacts of habitat loss and habitat alteration on wildlife populations in New England. Throughout her career, Cat’s interests have been on applying science to achieve wildlife conservation with a focus primarily on birds and mammals in several areas of the United States, South Africa, Belize and Australia.
To reach Starr King U. U. Church, take Grove Way to Center Street. Turn on Center toward Hayward. Then turn left at the light onto Kelly Street. Or take B Street to Kelly and turn right. Bayview is third street on left.