Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/264109
Adult snowy plovers are seen on Siesta Key throughout the year, Audubon members say. Photo by Fran Palmeri Siesta Seen 'CHICK CHASERS' In about a month, the endangered birds known as snowy plovers will be back on Siesta Key, trying to build nests and hatch chicks, Bob Luckner, a Sarasota Audubon volunteer, explained to Siesta Key Association (SKA) members on Feb. 6. Luckner — husband of SKA president Catherine Luckner — added that after an abundance of least terns were recorded on Siesta last year, Audubon members expect to see those birds returning to nest as well. Buffers will be put up around known nesting areas, he pointed out, in an effort to protect the avian visitors from human visitors. Those buffer zones — with rope and posts — will be visible between Beach Accesses 9 and 11 and Accesses 3 and 4, he added. As another measure of protection for the birds, Luckner said, Audubon volunteers have about 3,000 brochures from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to distribute, which offer information about helping the threatened species survive, he continued. Many brochures will go to condo- minium complexes on the island, so managers can give them to guests as the latter check in. Others will be left at the Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce for visitors to pick up, he said. Sarasota News Leader February 21, 2014 Page 110