Intensive and costly management measures to protect plovers are largely responsible for a 50 increase in abundance of this species in massachusetts over the past 7 years of HCP implementation

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife received a $400,000 Project Grant award from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund (CFDA 15.615) program. The funding will support the Division's efforts to review and amend the current Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) for the protection of the threatened Piping Plover in Massachusetts. Specifically, the project aims to provide greater flexibility in the management of plover nesting beaches in order to: (1) reduce conflicts and revenue losses for land managers due to increased plover populations and associated restrictions, (2) maintain community support for plover recovery efforts, and (3) better address limiting factors to enhance plover productivity and abundance. The 3-year project period runs from October 1, 2023 to September 30, 2026.

With this increase has come a corresponding ballooning in conflicts over curtailment of human activities and loss of beach and community revenue due to restrictions enacted to protect plovers. The massachusetts division of fisheries wildlife proposes to review and amend the current HCP to further address these conflicts. Much greater flexibility in management of plover nesting beaches is needed to: (1) provide relief for land managers appropriately managing nesting beaches but facing increasing conflict and or loss of revenue, (2) maintain community support for recovery efforts, and (3) more adequately address limiting factors to enhance plover productivity and abundance.