Two Piping Plovers Beat the Odds

On a quiet stretch of tidal flat at Outback Key, two tiny shorebirds illustrate a story of conservation success. “Jevie” (also known as “Obby” in Michigan) and “Lopey” are banded birds, part of an ongoing, science-driven effort to support the recovery of one of North America’s most imperiled shorebirds. 

Their behavior mirrors that of any other Piping Plover as they forage in the muck for nutritious worms or hunker down in the sand for a nap. Would you believe that they were rescued as eggs, hatched and raised by amazing humans at the University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS)? Once they fledged, they were released back onto the beaches of Michigan, where they made their way south during fall migration and eventually found their way to Florida and were spotted by the Audubon coastal team.

Piping Plovers face persistent threats, including shoreline development, human and dog disturbance, predators, and more. In 1986, when Piping Plovers were federally listed as a threatened species, productivity had fallen to dangerously low levels. The captive rearing program began in earnest at UMBS in 1993. 

Piping Plover survival depends on a chain of habitats stretching from their breeding beaches to migratory stopovers and wintering grounds. If any link in that chain is degraded or lost, the entire population is affected. Audubon’s conservation strategy for migratory birds across the hemisphere is built around this reality, and we focus conservation on protecting birds and the places they need across the full geographic and temporal scope of their lives.

Captive Rearing

Captive rearing efforts for Great Lakes Piping Plovers involve the collection of eggs when an incubating adult goes missing. Although both males and females incubate, if one disappears, the remaining adult cannot both incubate and forage for themselves. When this happens, the eggs are taken into a controlled environment at UMBS, allowing the remaining adult to seek another mate and potentially renest. At UMBS, zookeepers from across the country lend a helping hand during one of the most vulnerable plover life stages, enabling supplementation of a still-small population with individuals that otherwise would have perished.  Following the release of captive-reared birds, band resighting and reporting allows biologists to assess post-release survival, habitat selection and reintegration into the wild population. Since the program’s inception, over 400 individuals have been released, a substantial contribution to Great Lakes plover numbers.

Jevie, hatched 2023, and Lopey, hatched 2025, were released at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore after they became flight capable with the hope that they would successfully complete their first fall migration along with the other wild-raised chicks present at the site. Their presence on Outback Key in late fall of 2025 corroborates previous evidence that captive-reared individuals can successfully navigate migration and select appropriate winter habitat. 

Why Connectivity Matters

The fact that two captive-reared Piping Plovers from this program have both found winter homes on Outback Key is remarkable. Their presence indicates that this site provides consistent, high-quality habitat capable of meeting shorebirds’ energetic and behavioral needs during the non-breeding season. It also reinforces a core principle of Audubon’s Flight Plan: protecting a connected network of habitats is as critical as safeguarding nesting beaches. Florida’s Gulf Coast plays an essential role for many shorebird species during winter, and sites like Outback Key function as nodes within a much larger hemispheric system. 

Birds are not constrained by human-defined boundaries of cities, states, or countries. Piping Plovers exemplify this connectivity by breeding in northern regions and migrating south to escape winter hardships. For Jevie and Lopey, that journey began just weeks after they learned to fly! Their migration required successful navigation and endurance across hundreds of miles to reach suitable winter habitat. While much of the intensive conservation work for Piping Plovers is done in their breeding territory, their survival also depends on the availability of safe, productive wintering and migratory stopover sites.

Wintering habitats like Outback Key are therefore critical, but often underappreciated, components of shorebird conservation. These sites provide essential foraging and roosting opportunities during a period when energetic demands remain high and suitable coastal habitat is increasingly limited. Their value is amplified by the number and diversity of birds they support, including captive-reared individuals still acclimating to life in the wild. 

Audubon Florida monitors coastal sites to document shorebird use, reduce disturbance, and maintain habitat conditions for both vulnerable and federally protected species. Observations of captive-reared individuals using these habitats alongside wild birds help researchers assess whether released plovers are selecting appropriate habitat and where those critical habitats are found.

Monitoring and Evaluating Success

Survival through migration, successful overwintering, and eventual recruitment into the breeding population are all meaningful indicators of progress. Individually identifiable birds like Jevie and Lopey contribute valuable data that inform adaptive management decisions across the species’ range. Jevie successfully raised his first chick this summer, demonstrating the ongoing success of the program.

Captive rearing is not a standalone solution, but part of a broader conservation framework that includes habitat protection, predator management, disturbance reduction, and public engagement. Data collected from captive-reared plovers help refine when and where this strategy is most effective and how it can complement existing management efforts.

Coastal Stewardship

You can help contribute to this growing body of knowledge and species recovery by reporting banded birds you see, respecting posted areas and protections, giving shorebirds adequate space, and supporting conservation initiatives on breeding and wintering shores. For more information about the Great Lakes piping plover captive rearing program, check out the newly published book Raised to be Wild: The Tale of a Great Lakes Piping Plover. Interested in volunteering with us? Click here!