Can oiled shorebirds and their nests and eggs be successfully rehabilitated? A case study involving the threatened Hooded plover Thinornis rubricollis in South-eastern Australia

Although shorebirds are detrimentally affected by marine oil spills, they are often overlooked during rescue and rehabilitation efforts. This note describes a rescue and successful rehabilitation effort of an oiled adult and a juvenile Hooded Plover (Thinornis rubricollis) in Victoria, south-eastern Australia, during an oil-spill which oiled almost 1% of the State’s population of this threatened beach-nesting species. Two birds requiring intervention were located, selectively captured, cleaned and released. Both have survived at least two years after the spill and have bred, with at least one successfully fledging young. The fledgling has also successfully bred. Two nests with eggs present during clean-up operations were protected and hatched successfully. This small case study indicates that at least some groups of breeding shorebirds, such as plovers and dotterels, can be effectively rescued and rehabilitated during oil spills, and hence should not be overlooked during such circumstances.