A postcard has made its southwards migration to me from Iceland! What a really nice surprise from friends @VMendezAragon and @_JoseAAlves_ just letting me know how much they enjoyed #ISTC20 and #IWSGconf which I played a small part in. Thanks guys! 😊

And a big thanks again to the #ISTC20 team of @Nina_OHanlon @TriinKaasiku @ElwynSharps supported by @enicurus @Camilo_Carneiro and @VMendezAragon - it always takes a t team to deliver these events! #IWSGconf

Thank you so much @drredshank for your very kind words at #IWSGconf re. #ISTC20. It was a pleasure and honour to work with IWSG for @IBIS_journal on #ISTC20 - a huge success thanks to the hard work of two great societies! #ornithology #shorebirds #waders

Thought I was gonna miss mother this due to #ISTC20!

6 #ISTC20 This was the first successful use of radio transmitters on Hooded Plovers. Chick fate is still a major knowledge gap and barrier to species recovery. Although radio transmitters increased confidence in the information collected, new alternatives are needed. Any ideas?😊

5 #ISTC20 Remote cameras provided valuable info about egg fate and Aus magpie was confirmed as a new predator. With help from our #CitizenScientists, @birdlifeoz’s Beach-nesting Birds Team keeps using cameras at sites where there is ongoing failure to inform adaptive #management.

4 #ISTC20 There was no difference in survival rate between tagged (5 fledglings) and untagged (6 fledglings) chicks. Fate was robustly determined for 3 tagged chicks – 1 killed by a dog and deliberately hidden by a human, and 2 suffered avian attack.

3 #ISTC20 Threats' impact on egg and chick survival is poorly understood. We set up remote-sensing cameras on 81 Hoodie clutches to confirm nest fate, and radio-tagged 27 Hoodie chicks (+22 untagged siblings were monitored) to monitor survival and determine causes of mortality.

2 #ISTC20 Threats’ impact on egg & chick survival is poorly understood. We set up remote-sensing cameras on 81 Hoodie clutches along the Victorian coast to confirm nest fate, and radio-tagged 27 Hoodie chicks (from 27 broods) to monitor survival and determine causes of mortality.

1 #ISTC20 Low reproductive success threatens long-term viability of many #shorebird populations. Hooded Plovers (aka hoodies) are highly threatened #BeachNestingBirds along AUS southern coast and impacted by threats like human disturbance and introduced & superabundant predators.

6 #ISTC20 So is this all working? Yes! Long-term, strategic changes to beach management, collaborative work with land managers & the involvement of community volunteers have been ingredients for success at minimising human threats. Next steps tackle non-compliance and predators!

5 #ISTC20 Our data also informed changes to local dog laws to minimise off-leash dog threat to breeding Hooded Plovers. Working with land managers, we've implemented seasonal leashing laws, no dog areas & flexible beach closures during the chick phase. Now to improve compliance!

4 #ISTC20 Erecting signs and fencing around vulnerable breeding sites to buffer disturbance and eliminate crushing, has significantly increased hatching success and chick survival: signs and fences combined were the most effective management.

3 #ISTC20 Taking the Bellarine Pen & Surf Coast as an example, within 12 years of recovery effort, the population has increased from 9 to 22 breeding pairs. Working with land managers & volunteers, we’re protecting 22 breeding sites via on-ground actions, education & regulations.

2 #ISTC20 We identified human disturbance and invasive predators as major threats. Our objectives are to ⬆️breeding success to ⬆️population & protect habitat. >500 trained #CitizenScientists monitor breeding Hooded Plover pairs across ~300 sites in Victoria and South Australia.

1 #ISTC20 Monitoring from 1980 onwards revealed a decline in Hooded Plover population along Victorian coast (southern Australia). From 2006, @birdlifeoz runs a broad-scale adaptive management project to improve this declining trajectory by managing threats to breeding birds.

Make sure to follow #ISTC20 today! Some great #shorebird science is being shared. Tune in an enjoy this amazing #SciComm initiative for FREE and from your COUCH. We're presenting today @ 6:40PM and 6:50PM AEDT. See you then! @BirdlifeOz @ReneeMead10 @GrainneMaguire7

I’ve now got @marcrileydj for company on @BBC6Music for the final sessions of #ISTC20. A real treat as I dont usually get to listen the boy lard after 7.30 pm.

Just loving @BBC6Music’s album of the week session and @steelpulse's Handsworth Revolution with @steve_lamacq as my backdrop to #ISTC20 this evening :-)

OK #ISTC20 Twitter peeps! I’ve been sat at my desk.screen since 0800 this morning. Not sure I will now be able to stand and make it to the loo! Back for net session at 1630 UTC. Nothing happen please before I get back!

OK Twitter peeps! Let's do this #ISTC20 thing! First cup of freshly brewed coffee on the desk with snacks of choice at the ready :-) Enjoy!

Our team will be presenting at #ISTC20!
👉8 OCT 7:40 UTC (8 OCT 18:40 AEDT)
👉8 OCT 7:50 UTC (8 OCT 18:50 AEdT)
We didn't wanna miss the first International Shorebird Twitter conference!
#ornithology #ThinkBeachBirds #MindTheHoodies
@BirdlifeOz @GrainneMaguire7 @ReneeMead10

Help please! I need a handful of #ornithology folk experienced with drafting Twitter threads on either a smart device and/or laptop/PC to read through a ‘how to’ guide I’m preparing for #ISTC20. Please DM with your email and I will ping the document over for comment. Thanks!

I love using @TweetDeck as one of my social media dashboards. Mine is currently shouting at me that submission for #ISTC20 closes today! If you’re researching #shorebirds/#waders then I hope you’ve submitted to this great @WaderStudy/@IBIS_journal #ornithology Twitter conf