Plover Patrol Community Science Program Training (virtual)

Snowy plovers at South Beach.\Photo by Molly Sultany.

Portland Audubon is hosting three training events for the Plover Patrol Community Science Program. This project aims to engage local communities to help track where plovers are and how they are doing on the north coast as other management occurs. Many of Oregon Shores' CoastWatchers participate in this program.

• Virtual: Wednesday, March 22, from 6-8 p.m.
• Virtual: Thursday, March 23, from 6-8 p.m.
• In-person: Saturday, March 18, from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., at Nehalem Bay State Park

Each training contains four modules that cover all relevant topics needed to understand snowy plovers and what we can do to help them. This training is free and open to anyone interested in volunteering their time to complete surveys.

More about the program:

"Portland Audubon is partnering with Oregon Parks and Recreation Department and the Institute for Natural Resources to monitor endangered western Snowy Plovers at four sites on the North Coast (from Clatsop Spit in Astoria to Sitka Sedge beach near Pacific City) starting in April and continuing through the summer.  We are looking for folks to perform surveys twice a month but can do fewer if needed. Surveys will take 2-4 hours (depending on the site).  Some sites will require a fair amount of walking on sandy beach habitat."

In addition to Oregon Shores, partners of this program include the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, Audubon Society of Lincoln City, Friends of Netarts Bay, Friends of Cape Falcon, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Oregon Biodiversity Information Center.

Learn more about the training and register here, or contact Allison Anholt (aanholt@audubonportland.org) with any questions.