words by Kris Hansen
photos by Dustin Weidner

Nagamo, the Piping Plover chick that hatched at Montrose Dunes this summer, left for winter climes in mid August, bringing to a close my first year as a Piping Plover Monitor. Today is Plover Appreciation Day, and I certainly learned to appreciate these endangered birds.

It was a year of big emotional swings—curiosity, excitement, peacefulness, joy, terror, and gratitude.

It began with hope, when Imani, the son of Monty and Rose, returned to Montrose Dunes on April 25 in hopes of finding a mate. He had spent the previous two years walking the beach alone. As all of the plover monitors watched, two to a shift, shifts every two hours from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., we hoped and prayed he would attract a mate this year.

And then, on May 11, along came another male. First informally called Green Dot for the marking on his leg band, this male bird fledged from Cat Island, Wisconsin in 2023. He successfully hid from the monitors there and was assumed dead. Surprise! Following a naming contest at the Cat Island library, he was christened Pippin after the town’s historic roller coaster. (I prefer to think of Chicago Bulls great Scottie Pippen.)

Imani and Pippin promptly began territorial behaviors, walking side by side across the protected beach and piping assertively. While I wished that Pippin was female, I was delighted that Imani had another Piping Plover to interact with. Perhaps two handsome males would be enough to stop a female mid-flight?

I erupted with joy at the return of Sea Rocket. One of three captive-raised chicks released at the dunes last year, she was last seen heading south for the winter with fishing line tangled around one leg. Few thought she could survive. Not only did she lose the fishing line, she successfully returned to Montrose. And she’s a she! (One of the other 2023 chicks, Wild Indigo, is a male and settled in Port Aransas, Texas. There is no information about the final chick, Prickly Pear.)

My anticipation rose as Imani and Sea Rocket began mating. On May 31, she laid the first egg. The team from the National Fish and Wildlife Service (NFWS) sprang into action. The latest-model raccoon-proof cage was installed around the nest, along with a 24/7 monitoring camera.

Sea Rocket laid three more eggs, one every other day, until she had a full clutch of four. She and Imani promptly began incubating, and Lake Michigan promptly began acting up with big storm surges. NFWS carefully moved the eggs just long enough to build up the dune and raise the nest scrape much higher. While Imani and Sea Rocket were not pleased, they promptly resumed incubating.

For twenty-one days, Imani and Sea Rocket took turns incubating the nest. Monitors kept an eye out for Common Grackles, which is the only predator that can get inside the cage. Imani was having none of that, and he also chased away Pippin and any other bird that came near (including Kevin, the persistent Ring-billed Gull).

On June 29, three adorable chicks pecked their way out of their shells. Within an hour they were foraging near the nest. I nervously watched to see if Imani and Sea Rocket would keep incubating the last egg. They did, and the fourth chick hatched on June 30. Plover experts say this is a great success for first-time parents and will likely inspire Imani and Sea Rocket to return to Montrose Dunes next year.

I felt proud as punch, at least when I could catch my breath from repeatedly trying to count four scurrying chicks. Now I was monitoring the skies for gulls, Great Blue Herons, Peregrine Falcons and anything else that might attack a chick. I “walked” gulls on the beach away from the nest, waved my arms at airborne threats, and was grateful that Imani was such a fierce and protective papa.

My heart broke on July 10 when I learned that one of the chicks had died. Luckily for science, the little body was found and sent for necropsy. The next day, a living but feeble chick was taken to Lincoln Park Zoo for treatment and did not survive the night. Three days later, the smallest chick began to struggle. It too was taken to the zoo and did not survive. While painful, I tried to take heart from the knowledge that scientists would learn from these tiny tragedies.

Thankfully, the fourth chick continued to thrive. On July 20 they were officially named Nagamo, which means “he/she sings” in the Ojibwe language, one of the tribes that originally called Chicago home. The name was selected from a host of submissions by a team representing COS, the Chicago Bird Alliance, and the Illinois Ornithological Society.

Sea Rocket soon became focused on gaining weight for her fall migration and left July 18. Imani continued to keep a watchful eye on Nagamo, piping “Get down!” anytime a predator soared overhead. Imani left for his winter home on August 2.

Did I mention terror? On a very windy day, Nagamo was not seen for forty-five minutes before my shift started. My partner and I searched for them for nearly an hour, then called the head of the plover monitoring program. Per her instructions, I prowled carefully through the vegetation near the protected beach, hoping against hope that I would find a live chick and not a body. When she arrived, the little stinker popped right out, healthy as can be. Nagamo clearly knows who their guardian angel is!

On July 21, Nagamo was considered officially fledged by the NFWS, 23 days after hatching. The chick was quickly replacing baby down with adult feathers, and often flapped their wings and ran on their toes to catch the wind. On July 23 Nagamo took their first flight! Flights became longer and longer, and on August 8 they took off flying north, not to be seen for the rest of the day. Nagamo had discovered the beach in Waukegan where three other plover chicks lived. Nagamo came and went several times the next week, staying away overnight like a classic teenager, until a “final” lift-off on August 17. They were briefly spotted back at Montrose on August 29, and then at 63rd Street Beach on September 1, but since then Nagamo presumably has made their way to wintering grounds.

While I did not see those final flights, I was deeply grateful for the chance to help Imani, Sea Rocket, and Nagamo this season. With luck, all of our plovers will be back at Montrose next summer and continue Chicago’s contribution to the recovery of the Great Lakes Piping Plover population.

2024 Piping Plover Reflection