Friday, March 23, 2012

Bandit - The Piping Plover is back at Breezy Point Queens...

Guess who is back? The hottest chick in Breezy Point that is, known by her nickname, "Bandit". Bandit nicknamed by a couple of Piping Plover volunteers at Breezy Point Queens New York, is identified by the black flag up left, yellow band over dark blue low left and white band on the lower right leg.

Yesterday, was my third encounter with Bandit and the second time I was able to photograph (just barely before the fog rolled in) her at Breezy Point. Regular readers may remember that she successfully nested at Breezy Point and had chicks, which I documented last year (see post here).

Dr. Cheri L. Gravatto-Trevor, who is involved in the research on these banded Piping Plovers emailed me this morning with the following: "Since Bandit left New York last year, she was reported on July 14th 2011 at Cape Lookout, NC, then seen back in The Bahamas last winter, then she was again seen on March 11th 2012 at Topsail Is., NC".

If yesterday's sighting holds true to form, I would bet that Bandit is finally back to her breeding grounds and maybe we will see her with chicks again. The Borough of Queens, just happen to be the perfect location...fit for a Queen don't you think?

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5 comments:

  1. cindyzlogicMarch 23, 2012 at 1:09 PM

    I think Plovers are so cute! We get them at the Quivera Refuge in Kansas.

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  2. hilaryMarch 23, 2012 at 1:56 PM

    Great post Andrew!

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  3. Jason KesslerMarch 24, 2012 at 11:40 AM

    Happy to see your friend return but, good lord, are ALL of those bands necessary? That's allotta bling for such a small bird. Or ANY bird.

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  4. BIRDINGDUDEMarch 24, 2012 at 8:24 PM

    @Cindy and Hilary - thank you for the visit and nice comments.

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  5. BIRDINGDUDEMarch 24, 2012 at 8:30 PM

    @OpposableChums - thanks for the visit and comment. You raise a very good question and one that I and many others have expressed when it comes to banding. In the case of this bird, I don't know why all these bands were needed and will followup with the research team on finding out what was the reason behind the use of that many bands. Appreciate your concerns!

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