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First Piping Plover Eggs Reported at Chicago’s Montrose Beach and Waukegan

The endangered Great Lakes birds offer a fragile sign of recovery.

Overview

  • Sea Rocket and Imani have a confirmed egg at Montrose Beach, and Pippin and Blaze have eggs at Waukegan Beach, with Blaze reported at two.
  • Chicago Piping Plovers urged people to give the birds space and to avoid sharing nest locations or photos to protect the nests.
  • Monitors expect up to four eggs in the Montrose clutch, and incubation typically lasts four to five weeks.
  • Imani hatched at Montrose in 2021 and Sea Rocket was captive-reared and released there in 2023, and this is their third season nesting together with past chicks hatched.
  • Recovery continues but the birds remain federally endangered, with a record 88 Great Lakes pairs last year and a delisting goal of 150 pairs including 50 outside Michigan.