For the first time, since they returned as breeding birds in 2017, after a more than 60-year absence, two piping plover pairs fledged a total of five chicks!
After seeing our recent post on July 29, you might be wondering, “Weren’t there three nests this season?” The answer is: YES.
That unusual situation required the eggs to be taken to the University of Michigan Biological Station for rearing and eventual release into the wild.
Four captive reared chicks will fledge from that nest, bringing the Pennsylvania total to nine more piping plovers entering the critically endangered Great Lakes population! It’s been a banner year!
Presque Isle State Park is the only suitable nesting habitat for piping plovers in the state.
Plovers lay 3-4 eggs in a depression on the beach, called a "scrape," that is made by the male during courtship. The female enhances the scrape upon selecting one for nesting.
The park also provides important stopover habitat for piping plovers, and many other shorebirds, to rest and refuel on their way between northern breeding sites and southern wintering areas – where they’re headed now.
We celebrate this season’s nesting success with our Pennsylvania piping plover recovery partners: DCNR State Parks, Erie Bird Observatory, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Northeast Region, US Army Corps of Engineers, Buffalo District, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program.
These milestones could not have been achieved without their dedication to plover monitoring and providing healthy habitat!
Visit the Game Commission’s Piping Plover webpage for more information on the species.
For more information on recovery efforts, visit the Great Lakes Piping Plover Recovery webpage.
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[Posted: August 13, 2022] PA Environment Digest
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