I heard a report of a Piping Plover, a molting adult bird in Milwaukee County yesterday. I checked out the location this morning and it was still present. This species is considered endangered in Wisconsin. At one time it was said there were 500 to 800 pairs of Piping Plovers nesting in the Great Lakes region, but by 1990, that number had declined to about a dozen pairs, all in northern Michigan. This bird is not banned where typically when we see them they are. Where is this one from, if Wisconsin or Michigan, it might have been banded. I found the bird and took a few photos. It was a very warm morning with temps in the 80’s, low winds and mostly sunny skies. Images were taken on July 28, 2025.
The Piping Plover giving nice looks…
Preening…
Still preening and looking around…
The Piping Plover takes a few steps…
Then picks something out of the algae to eat….this is what it continually did, getting things to eat while I was there other than the preening…
What a beauty!
A rare bird indeed. I don’t follow ebird, so good to see this on wisbirdn. Thanks for posting beautiful photos of it.
He is perfect!
Hi Jim,
I’m a biologist with USFWS and serve as the piping plover recovery coordinator for WI and MN. I’d love to get more information from you regarding the location of this individual so I can share it with the greater recovery team. Thank you!
Email address is jade_arneson@fws.gov.
What an adorable bird!
Wonder how the banding was missed on this one