NYC Plover Project

It’s #WorldMigratoryBirdDay 2024! This year’s theme is “Protect Insects, Protect Birds.” Here’s a young Piping Plover chick seen last summer at Ft Tilden with a moth. Migratory birds AND insects are greatly imperiled, & the far biggest threats to both are us. Insects are essential sources of energy for many migratory bird species, not only during the breeding seasons but also during their extensive journeys and greatly affect the timing, duration, and overall success of bird migrations. Along their migration routes, birds actively seek out insects in fields, forests, wetlands, and various habitats during stopovers. The timing of bird migration often coincides with peak insect abundance at stopover locations, supplying nourishment for birds to replenish their energy reserves before continuing their journeys. The loss and disturbance of insect populations at breeding sites and along avian migration routes threaten bird survival and well-being. Natural spaces like forests and grasslands that have been transformed or endangered by intensive agriculture and urban development and its effects such as light pollution can result in a decline in insect populations. Pesticides and herbicides designed to protect crops harm insects that birds rely on for food. A scarcity of energy- and protein-rich insects can hinder bird migration and breeding, leading to weakened immune systems, reduced reproductive success, and increased mortality rates for both adult birds and their offspring. Birds play crucial roles in pollination and pest control, and a lack of insects disrupts these ecosystem functions. Overpopulation of certain insects, without natural predators from birds, can also cause outbreaks that damage plant health and agriculture. World Migratory Bird Day 2024 stresses the need for proactive conservation measures. This includes reducing the use of pesticides and fertilizers, and where possible, switching to organic farming. Other measures include maintaining and connecting areas of natural vegetation which provide food and shelter for birds and other species, in agricultural landscapes. (Source: World Migratory Bird Day)

This is a momentous day for NYC Plover Project! We have launched a collab with Bird Collective! Please read this beautiful profile - https://lnkd.in/evQ6jihn - and you can shop the full collection here - https://lnkd.in/e4dKExbB

It’s Earth Day. Did you know that more than 1 million species are barreling towards extinction & most North American shorebird species are in decline, with many losing more than 50% of their population over the last three decades? What’s more is that our shorebirds in NYC are under the gravest threat in years. Let’s champion biodiversity & center the stories of ALL New Yorkers, even if they have feathers. Join us to #protecttheplovers ❤️

Fewer than 100 Piping Plovers come to Rockaway each year. They need our help. Join us. #protecttheplovers

Piping Plover chicks are impossibly small, and cannot fly for the first month or more of their fragile young lives. They need the beach for survival, we use it for recreation. There’s a big difference. Join our volunteer effort in 2024 to fiercely protect them!

It’s #NationalBirdDay! Here’s just a few of the more than 330 bird species that call the Jamaica Bay ecosystem home. We stand with our friends, neighbors and partners each and every day to protect them all. They are very much New Yorkers too! Join us!

2023 is the 50th Anniversary of the Endangered Species Act. We must do more to protect the soecies who need our help most! Here’s an op-ed published in the New York Daily News earlier this year.

NYC Plover Project was proud to receive the 2023 Keesee Conservation Award from National Audubon Society New York together with Bahamas National Trust & Mass Audubon. Read more about it here: