Meet the Great Lakes Piping Plover!

Appearance

Piping plovers are small, round, sandy-colored shorebirds that blend right in with their beachfront homes. When they visit Michigan for their breeding season adults will have a black collar and band/bar across their brow and an orange bill with black tip. Males and females look very similar, but males generally have a longer headband that reaches their eyes, while the female’s headband stops before the eyes. Juveniles and non-breeding adults look much like each other, with a black bill and no collar or headband.

With only 80 breeding pairs in Michigan, it’s not surprising that many people aren’t familiar with the piping plover. Read more about them, and prepare to fall in (p)love!

Piping plover with breeding plumage

Photo: Joy Thompson

Piping plover with non-breeding plumage

Photo: Adobe

Size

Plovers are about 7 inches long and weigh between 40-65 grams (1.4-2.3 ounces) - or roughly the same as 10 nickels. Chicks weigh only about 6 grams - for reference, that’s about five paper clips!

Lifespan

On average, plovers live approximately 5 - 6 years, although some have lived more than twice as long! Currently, there are three birds tied for the record of World’s Oldest Plover at 15 years old!

Migration

Like so many wish we could do, Great Lakes Piping Plovers say goodbye to Michigan as summer ends, wintering along the Atlantic coast in places like South Carolina, sunny Florida, and even the tropical paradise of the Bahamas! In mid-to-late-April, they fly hundreds or even thousands of miles back to their preferred nesting sites in Michigan.

Fast Facts:

  • The piping plover’s scientific name is Charadrius melodus.

  • There are three populations of piping plovers: Atlantic Coast, Northern Great Plains, and of course, Great Lakes. The Great Lakes population is listed as federally endangered; the other two populations are listed as threatened. 

  • There are two subspecies of piping plover. Charadrius melodus circumcinctus encompasses the Great Lakes and Northern Great Plains populations, while the Atlantic Coast piping plovers belong to Charadrius melodus melodus.

  • When an adult plover thinks their chicks or nest are threatened, they distract the predator by pretending they have a broken wing. If you see this display, you might be too close for comfort and should give the plover some space. 

  • The oldest female plover alive today is called Gabby. She’s 15 and has fledged 33 chicks! She made it back to her favorite nesting spot on Sleeping Bear Dunes April, 2024!

  • Every piping plover gets unique leg bands, which ensure that researchers and monitors can identify each individual bird.