From Coastal Carolina to Canada, Check Out this Endangered Shorebird’s Journey

On a gray January day in 2025, miles out in Huntington Beach State Park, I saw the familiar face of a Piping Plover—a tiny, endangered shorebird that spends the winter on South Carolina’s coast. But this one was outfitted with a series of small bands on her legs. Where did she come from? How old was she? The bands would be able to tell me all that and more.

As Audubon’s coastal stewardship coordinator, I spend my winter days surveying shorebirds on the coast. Finding a banded bird isn’t common. Finding a banded Piping Plover is even more unusual. But this bird would prove to be exceptionally rare.

It turns out, I had spotted a Piping Plover from the endangered Great Lakes population, which stands at only 90 pairs. She was raised in captivity in 2024 after her egg was washed from her nest in a storm, and my sighting proved she had completed her first migration. Before releasing her, biologists outfitted her with color bands to keep tabs on her movements. 

Following Darla to Her Nesting Grounds 

Fast forward to the spring of 2025. This tiny shorebird flew nearly 1,000 miles from South Carolina to Darlington Provincial Park, Ontario, where she fledged a chick under the watchful eye of Birds Canada and Darlington Park staff and volunteers and was given the name “Darla.” That fall, I was happy to see her return to South Carolina for another winter. 

As the spring of 2026 approached, I was planning a trip to Toronto to see Elton John in concert when I remembered I would only be an hour from Darla’s summer home. What were the chances I could visit Darla on her nesting grounds?  

I reached out to the Birds Canada Piping Plover team—they were just as excited as I was about this possibility, but equally apprehensive. Darla had not yet returned. She could have chosen a different beach, or worse, not made it through the journey north.  

I boarded the plane in dismay, beginning Darla’s annual migration—South Carolina to Ontario. I was going by commercial airplane, travelling at 500 mph. Darla would be making this same journey powered only by her own two wings and a winter fat store.  

When the plane touched down to the early spring landscape of Canada, my phone pinged with an update from the Birds Canada team; Darla had arrived in Ontario! We had flown in on the exact same day. 

The morning after the concert, I joined Birds Canada Ontario Piping Plover Field Biologist JulieAnn Prentice to find Darla. We had never met before, we came from different countries and worked for different organizations, but we had one tiny bird in common.  

Sharing the Shore Across Borders 

It was cold and blustery; would Darla even be out where we could see her? A kilometer of walking and a brief scan later, there she was, camouflaged among grey pebbles. A full circle moment, from South Carolina to Ontario! 

As Julie and I walked, we discussed the different conservation techniques used to mitigate threats between our two locations. As it turns out, the Great Lakes and South Carolina face many of the same challenges when it comes to Piping Plover conservation; extreme weather, habitat loss, natural predators, and human disturbance. 

Because we share these threats, our messaging to the public is the same; give shorebirds space to rest and forage, keep pets leashed and off the beach, and don’t litter or feed wildlife. No matter where you are, following these guidelines gives shorebirds like Piping Plovers a helping hand. 

I went home feeling optimistic that Darla would have a successful nest this year and a safe flight back to South Carolina at the end of the summer. At the time of publication, she had successfully raised 4 chicks to fledge with her mate Bowie and begun her trip south, much to the joy of the local volunteers and staff who dedicate their time to protecting her. Will I see her again, gracing our South Carolina shores? Only time will tell.  

An orange plastic band or flag indicates a Piping Plover is from the Great Lakes Region; you can report sightings on the wintering grounds to plover@umn.edu; reports inform research and conservation efforts for this small population.