On May 1, 2020, Monty and Rose were sighted at Montrose Beach, marking their second year of nesting in this location. They had a very successful year, fledging 3 healthy chicks. Read updates below.
One of Monty & Rose’s three 2020 chicks, Nish, was spotted in Anclote Key State Park, Florida recently. Danny Sauvageau provided these wonderful photos of Nish exploring and eating in their winter home.
On September 1, 2020, The Great Lakes Piping Plover Recovery Effort reported on their Facebook page that the third Montrose Beach, IL fledgling, Nish, has been spotted on wintering grounds in Sarasota, Florida.
Much appreciation to Rick Greenspun who took a great picture and reported the sighting.
2 of Monty & Rose’s chicks from 2020 - Hazel and Esperanza - were spotted on islands in Georgia last week.
Adult male: O (G dot),V : X,- “Vinnie” [Orange band with a green dot on the upper left leg, Violet/purple band on the lower left leg, silver band on the upper right leg, no band on the lower leg].
Nest 1 chick: X,G (333) : O (Y dot),- "“Traveler” [Silver band on upper left leg, Green band on lower left leg with number 333, orange band on upper right leg with yellow dot, no band on lower right leg].
Nest 2 chick: X,G/O : O (R dot),G (343) “RoadRunner” [Silver band on upper left leg, Green and orange band on lower left leg, orange band on upper right leg with red dot, green band on lower right leg with number 343].
Nest 3 chick #1: X,G (362) : -,O (Y dot) "“Uno” [Silver band on upper left leg, Green band on lower left leg with number 362, no band on upper right leg , no orange band on lower right leg with yellow dot]
Hazel, Nish and Esperanza are just a bit over a month-old now. On July 20, they posed for their one-month photo shoots.
Today we were quick to locate Hazel and Nish, who were feeding along the lake shore, Rose kept them company. We soon located Monty at the opposite end of the beach, in the company of 14 Willets. But search as we may, we could not find Esperanza…
Thank you to one of our wonderful monitors, Raed Mansour, for capturing this adorable moment!
The three Piping Plover chicks have been named…
One of our wonderful volunteer monitors, Aerin Tedesco, took videos of the entire banding process. Now you can watch the whole thing from rounding the chicks up to the banding to the family reunion at the end. Enjoy!
In my last monitoring shift, I was struck by the quick passage of time: the 3 chicks, at 12 days old, were so big compared to my previous shift a week earlier…
The Chicago Piping Plover chicks were banded today.
Several videos by Aerin Tedesco captured fun moments in the 4-day old Piping Plover chicks’ lives. You can see the chicks being brooded, emerge from brooding, stretch and feed.
Monitor Susan Szeszol captured these images on June 24, 2020.
The Plovers continue to be concerned about the presence of the Killdeers at the fluddle where they are raising their chicks, and they consult with each other as evidenced in this video by Jeff Bilsky.
A big day for the Piping Plover family! After a quiet and restful early morning, Rose and Monty decide to move their little chicks to the nutritionally abundant fluddle in the volleyball area. But the Killdeer who have resided there all spring will not yield territory without a strong fight!
The Plovers and their chicks are very difficult to see from the trail without binoculars. Volunteer Monitors are stationed on the trail near the fluddle, and as the chicks roam, monitors will adjust their locations to best monitor and protect the chicks who are extremely vulnerable to predators and human disturbances.
If you choose to attempt to see the Plovers from the trail, please follow these guidelines to ensure the safety of the Plovers, the Monitors and yourself.
June 18, 2020 - The first chick from Monty and Rose’s 2020 nest has hatched!
Endangered piping plover chicks are once again running around Chicago’s Montrose Beach under the watchful eyes of a rotating crew of volunteer piping plover monitors. In recognition of the importance of this nest to recovery of this endangered species, the plover monitors have been granted access to the Lakefront to monitor the plover family.
Today marks a significant milestone with Monty and Rose. During nest monitoring, a fourth egg was confirmed. The clutch is now complete.
Yesterday, May 22, in the natural area at Montrose we found Monty and Rose sitting on three eggs in a nest scrape in the sand. The CPD, IDNR, and USDA joined USFWS on the scene right way to install protective measures.
On May 1, 2020 Jason Steger, Natural Areas Manager for the Chicago Park District, reported to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that Chicago’s piping plover pair are back on the beach at Montrose!
