Volunteers prepare for arrival of piping plovers at Montrose Beach
CHICAGO — It is almost time for Chicago’s piping plovers to return and volunteers flocked to Montrose Beach on Saturday to prepare for the visitor’s arrival.
“I come here regularly to take walks, to go bird watching and you know, because I use the grounds I also want to give back,” said Laura Miske, who is among the legion of piping plover fans.
Miske was just one of several people who joined in on the cleanup on Saturday.
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“Is always really exciting as a bird watcher to see birds that aren’t everyday birds, that only come at certain times of the year or are more elusive,” Miske said.
The Great Lakes were once home to about 800 pairs of piping plovers, now they are nearly extinct in the region.
In June of 2019, a pair began nesting at Montrose Beach. The two love birds, named Monty & Rose, returned the next year, and the year after that.
“They can’t have too much vegetation or otherwise they won’t nest, so that’s part of what we do, is try to keep the vegetation as sparse as possible,” Mark Kolasa, who also joined in on the cleanup, said.
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With trash pickers and buckets in hand, volunteers fanned out on Saturday morning as part of an effort to create that ideal nesting habitat.
The charismatic shorebirds are also good for the ecosystem.
“They also helped protect the rest of the habitat and the other species that live here. So we would also call that, like, an umbrella species. So they help protect the entire space.
Volunteers said the cleanup helps prepare the environment for nesting and foraging.
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