{"id":8803,"date":"2013-07-04T04:49:06","date_gmt":"2013-07-04T10:49:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=8803"},"modified":"2025-06-12T10:49:25","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T15:49:25","slug":"piping-plovers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2013\/07\/04\/piping-plovers\/","title":{"rendered":"Piping Plovers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"CuriousCurious Piping Plover – Nikon D200, handheld, f7.1, 1\/1250, ISO 250, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Piping Plovers are small, sparrow sized shorebirds that are endangered and threatened in most of their range primarily due to human disturbance on their nesting grounds. I photographed this Piping Plover at Fort De Soto County Park’s north beach in Florida in September of 2008. This plover approached me\u00a0while I was laying very still on the wet, sandy beach. It may have seen its reflection in my lens and came closer to check it out.<\/p>\n

\"PipingPiping Plover on the Gulf shore – Nikon D200, handheld, f7.1, 1\/1500, ISO 320, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

On the same\u00a0morning I photographed this Piping Plover nearby that\u00a0was going out of breeding plumage as it foraged along the shoreline of the Gulf of Mexico.<\/p>\n

These small shorebirds have\u00a0 limited breeding range and need our protection by fencing off nests, reducing off road vehicle use near nesting grounds and providing predator control.<\/p>\n

Happy 4th of July!<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Piping Plover images plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Piping Plovers are small, sparrow sized shorebirds that are endangered and threatened in most of their range primarily due to human disturbance on their nesting grounds. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":148317,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,25,704,2000,178],"tags":[4021,1114,3986,4323,275,274],"class_list":["post-8803","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-florida","category-fort-de-soto-county-park","category-pinellas-county-florida","category-piping-plovers","tag-bird-photography","tag-charadrius-melodus","tag-north-beach","tag-piping-plover","tag-plovers","tag-shorebirds-2"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/piping-plover-florida-mia-mcpherson-9201.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-2hZ","jetpack_sharing_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":15456,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2014\/07\/25\/posts-from-the-past-shorebirds\/","url_meta":{"origin":8803,"position":0},"title":"Posts from the Past – Shorebirds","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"July 25, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Today I am focusing on older posts that have shorebirds in them starting with Black-bellied Plovers.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Black-bellied Plover on a grassy dune at Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/black-bellied-plover-habitat-mia-mcpherson-2585.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/black-bellied-plover-habitat-mia-mcpherson-2585.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/black-bellied-plover-habitat-mia-mcpherson-2585.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/black-bellied-plover-habitat-mia-mcpherson-2585.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":35959,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2016\/02\/21\/piping-plover-on-a-shell-covered-beach-in-florida\/","url_meta":{"origin":8803,"position":1},"title":"Piping Plover On A Shell Covered Beach In Florida","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"February 21, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"I took this image of the Piping Plover on a shell covered beach right after the sun came up when the light had that sweet golden tone to it","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Piping Plover on a shell covered beach at Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/piping-plover-beach-mia-mcpherson-6381.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/piping-plover-beach-mia-mcpherson-6381.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/piping-plover-beach-mia-mcpherson-6381.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/piping-plover-beach-mia-mcpherson-6381.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4571,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2012\/03\/01\/piping-plover-down-dirty\/","url_meta":{"origin":8803,"position":2},"title":"Piping Plover – Down & Dirty","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 1, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Piping Plovers nest in shallow scrapes in sand, gravel, salt flats or dunes which leaves their nests vulnerable to predators and in danger of being accidentally stepped on.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Foraging Piping Plover at the shore of the Gulf of Mexico. Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/piping-plover-summer-feeding-mia-mcpherson-9726.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/piping-plover-summer-feeding-mia-mcpherson-9726.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/piping-plover-summer-feeding-mia-mcpherson-9726.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/piping-plover-summer-feeding-mia-mcpherson-9726.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1106,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2010\/10\/16\/shorebirds-of-fort-desoto-the-plovers\/","url_meta":{"origin":8803,"position":3},"title":"Shorebirds of Fort DeSoto – The Plovers","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"October 16, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Throughout the year you can see and photograph many different species of Plovers on Fort De Soto\u2019s beaches, tidal lagoons and spartina marshes.","rel":"","context":"In "Black-bellied Plovers"","block_context":{"text":"Black-bellied Plovers","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/shorebirds\/black-bellied-plovers\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Semipalmated Plover in early morning light, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/semipalmated-plover-mia-mcpherson-fort-desoto-5817.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/semipalmated-plover-mia-mcpherson-fort-desoto-5817.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/semipalmated-plover-mia-mcpherson-fort-desoto-5817.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/semipalmated-plover-mia-mcpherson-fort-desoto-5817.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9981,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2013\/10\/26\/piping-plover-on-the-shore-of-the-gulf-of-mexico-900th-post\/","url_meta":{"origin":8803,"position":4},"title":"Piping Plover on the shore of the Gulf of Mexico – 900th Post","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"October 26, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Shorebirds; like this tiny Piping Plover I photographed on the shore of the Gulf of Mexico, are the primary reason I became addicted to bird photography.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Piping Plover on the shore of the Gulf of Mexico, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/piping-plover-florida-gulf-mia-mcpherson-9730.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/piping-plover-florida-gulf-mia-mcpherson-9730.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/piping-plover-florida-gulf-mia-mcpherson-9730.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/piping-plover-florida-gulf-mia-mcpherson-9730.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3787,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2011\/12\/04\/piping-plover-and-semipalmated-plover-sunday-shorebirds\/","url_meta":{"origin":8803,"position":5},"title":"Piping Plover and Semipalmated Plover – Sunday Shorebirds","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"December 4, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"When I am out in the field I take a large amount of photos and there are times I don't get around to processing them until much later, these are two such images taken at Fort DeSoto, Florida in 2008.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Low angle Piping Plover at the north beach of Fort De Soto County Park in Pinellas County, Florida","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/piping-plover-mia-mcpherson-1485.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/piping-plover-mia-mcpherson-1485.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/piping-plover-mia-mcpherson-1485.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/piping-plover-mia-mcpherson-1485.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8803","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8803"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8803\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/148317"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8803"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}