Post 3: Stopover Site

A Few More Miles to Go Before I Roost

My project is on the piping plover and tracking variations in the environment of its wintering habitats that might account for changes in its previously observed territorial behavior. In previous posts, I have outlined the way I came to this project idea and where I had so far collected data from. The last month of work has flown by. As I have narrowed in on where and what my destination will be, I found more and more specific data that has furthered my progress.

I’ve settled on eight barrier islands and sections of peninsulas, chosen using a random process with the proviso that at least 40 piping plover must have roosted there during the 1991 International Piping Plover Census. There are six in Texas and two in Louisiana. The Texas six are Bolivar Flats, which is a specific region of Bolivar Peninsula that always attracts a lot of them, Brazos Island, Matagorda Peninsula, Mustang Island, San Jose Island, and South Padre Island. The Louisianian islands are East Timbalier Island and Raccoon Island.

Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau, I have collected data on the rate of housing construction on the islands where people live. Both peninsulas and a couple of the islands that I’ve included allow tourism but they’re wildlife refuges or federally owned, so no construction can take place. For these areas, rather than housing construction, I have looked into the rates of tourism that occur and at what time of the year. Because the piping plover would only really be affected by tourism that occurred during the non-breeding months, I have narrowed the scope to October through April in relevant years. Both the National Parks Service and Texas Parks and Wildlife have been useful sources as I collected this information.

I have also collected some data on the oil shipping and refining that occurs in the Gulf of Mexico. Though not much is available, I have been able to find some data related to petroleum coke refining capacity in Texas and Louisiana through the Energy Information Administration. Since every source on shipping routes that I have been able to find doesn’t have data that stretches back further than 2009, it seems that I will have to give up on that approach.

I should be done with my data analysis in the next few days and be able to present by the end of the month. I cannot wait to finally reach the wintering grounds at the end of this blog.