One of three piping plover chicks whose federally endangered status helped scuttle a major music festival at Montrose Beach — has died.
The piping plover chick was brought to the Lincoln Park Zoo Saturday when members of the Chicago birding community, who for weeks have been standing guard by the nest during daylight hours, noticed the chick was not moving normally.
“Despite supportive care all day and into the evening by veterinary staff of the Lincoln Park Zoo, the 11-day-old plover chick did not survive,” according to a statement issued by the Illinois Department of Natural Resource.
It died within 24 hours of being brought to the zoo, according to Louise Clemency, field supervisor for the Chicago office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The Lincoln Park Zoo will conduct a necropsy and tissue studies “in hopes that we can better understand the circumstances surrounding the sudden change in health,” according to the statement.
The chick was running around and seemed to be acting normally in the days leading up to its death, according to Leslie Borns, the longtime volunteer steward of the Montrose Beach Dunes — which are adjacent to the plovers’ sandy nest.
“It’s very sad,” she said. “But, truthfully, even one chick surviving is considered a good outcome for these birds.”
The bird’s presence on the beach — they apparently arrived in May — drew bird-lovers to Montrose Beach but also set off a battle with music festival that was scheduled to be held on the beach later this summer.
Eventually, on July 19, came the announcement that the festival, Mamby on the Beach, set for Aug. 23 and 24, would be canceled.
The two other chicks seem to be doing fine, Borns said.
