Delaware’s Piping Plover Population Experiences Slight Increase but Diminished Breeding Success
Beach-nesting piping plovers – a federally-listed threatened species that’s also a Delaware state-listed endangered species – experienced mixed results in Delaware in 2025. DNREC is reporting an increase in adult pair numbers, which helped bolster the state’s plover population, but nesting success faltered, largely due to predation and unfavorable climate conditions.
DNREC, USFWS and Tri-State Bird Rescue Collaborate to Rehab Adult Piping Plover
“Nomad,” an adult piping plover that had spent much of his migratory life on Delaware beaches, went further inland for rehabilitation recently at Tri-State Bird Rescue in Newark after sustaining an injury at Fowlers Beach on Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge. Through the efforts of DNREC, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Tri-State, Nomad made his way back to a healthy beach-nesting lifestyle upon his release in July at The Point on Cape Henlopen.
Piping Plover Population in Delaware Experiences Slight Decline, Offset by Higher Nesting Success
Beach-nesting piping plovers – a federally-listed threatened species and Delaware state-listed endangered species – experienced a decrease in adult pair numbers but increased nesting success in Delaware during 2024.
Stretch of Beach at Gordons Pond That Closed for Protection of Threatened Piping Plovers is Reopened After Nest Failure
DNREC announced today that a stretch of beach at Gordons Pond within Cape Henlopen State Park has been reopened to beachgoers and surf fishers after the failure of a piping plover nest that was discovered there in late May.
DNREC to Offer Training for Volunteer Beach-nesting Bird Monitors
DNREC is seeking volunteers who want to help protect Delaware’s beach-nesting birds – which include federally-listed threatened piping plovers and state-listed endangered American oystercatchers.
