Cape May Meadows

In 1984, the piping plover was listed as an endangered species in New Jersey.
Due to its precarious existence on New Jersey's beaches, the piping plover remains one of New Jersey's most endangered species.
New Jersey reported 108 breeding pairs in 2010.

FUN FACTS:

* This 7” shorebird is named for it’s plaintive bagpipe-like peep.
* Feeds on marine worms, small crustaceans, insects and other marine invertebrates.
* Male builds the nest by scraping a shallow depression in the sand and lining it with fragments of seashells.
* Typical clutch of 4 eggs – incubation typically begins when the third egg is laid.
* The eggs are oval and cryptically colored – the color of sand with dark specks and marks.
* Incubation is 26 – 28 days.
* Young are precocial – able to forage for themselves within hours of hatching.
* Young are able to fly within 21-35 days
* As of January 2002, there were 5938 breeding piping plovers distributed across beaches from Alberta, Canada, to the Atlantic Coast.
Of these, 1465 birds occur in Canada and 4473 birds occur in the central and eastern United States.
* The plover’s Atlantic breeding grounds range from South Carolina up to Newfoundland.