Difficulties of counting breeding Golden Plovers Pluvialis apricaria.

The article discusses the common methods of surveying Golden Plover, a bird. Although difficult to census accurately, standard techniques have focused upon the mapping of bird locations whilst walking variable routes. A more general technique for surveying all moorland waders surveyed areas to a maximum distance of 100 m twice in a season, once from early April to mid-May, and again from mid-May to the end of June. Maps of bird locations from the two visits are compared to estimate the number of breeding pairs within a geographical unit. Any Golden Plover survey method should be properly calibrated for a range of scenarios, including populations in which off-duty birds do not feed on pasture and therefore are more likely to be detected, and northern populations where the breeding season will be short and more synchronous. The precise level of intensity required for a particular survey will depend upon the resources available and the degree of accuracy required. Where accurate, site specific counts are required, a more intensive approach may be needed, using either pre-nesting or post-hatching surveys, the accuracy of which should be tested with further calibration.