Days before it was to be given a name, one of the four piping plover chicks at Montrose Beach was presumed dead Wednesday.
Three chicks were confirmed at the nest of piping plovers Imani and Sea Rocket, but the fourth chick was missing under “unknown circumstances,” according to the Chicago Piping Plovers, a volunteer organization dedicated to protecting the endangered birds.
“While not a pet, this piping plover chick was much loved and will be missed. This piping plover chick will be remembered,” the organization said in a statement.
The chick went missing after 6 p.m. Tuesday and was presumed dead, “as it cannot survive away from its parents,” said Tamima Itani, lead volunteer coordinator with Chicago Piping Plovers. The other three chicks “are doing fine,” she added.
“Crossed the Rainbow Bridge” is a term some animal lovers use when they experience the loss of a beloved pet.
— Chicago Piping Plovers (@ChicagoPiping) July 10, 2024
This morning we confirmed 3 chicks. The 4th is no longer with us due to unknown circumstances.
While not a pet, this chick was much loved and will be missed. pic.twitter.com/4P49MQq4Wn
Imani’s and Sea Rocket’s four eggs hatched June 30 and July 1, about a month after their first egg was found in a protected area of Montrose Beach.
The chicks cannot be told apart, and their genders won’t known until they return in the spring, Itani said.
The Chicago Bird Alliance is having a naming contest for the new chicks. Name proposals are being accepted through Thursday on Chicago Piping Plovers’ social media platforms.
Imani was hatched at Montrose Beach in 2021 to piping plovers Monty and Rose. Sea Rocket was a captive-reared chick released at the beach in July 2023.
Montrose Beach became a protected sanctuary in 2019, the same year the first piping plover chicks hatched in Illinois since they disappeared across the state in 1955.
The Great Lakes population of piping plovers is considered endangered. According to the U.S. National Park Service, there are currently 75 to 80 nesting pairs in the Great Lakes area.
“Their numbers dropped to between 12 and 17 breeding pairs in the 1980s,” Itani said. “Strong measures were put in place to help with the recovery.”
The piping plovers’ disappearance and decline has been attributed to nest disturbance, predation and habitat deterioration, according to Great Lakes Piping Plovers.
To keep nests safe, people are asked to respect the closed-area boundaries, keep dogs on leashes and take trash with them.
