Piping plover chicks hatch on the shore in Waukegan

A new trio of the beloved piping plovers have arrived in Waukegan.

The three chicks hatched Thursday on the lakeshore of the North Shore suburb after piping plovers Blaze and Pepper incubated their first nest about a month ago and laid four eggs, the Lake County Audubon Society said. Blaze and Pepper were captive-reared last year and returned to Waukegan in May before producing their eggs.

The fourth egg was still being incubated and was being monitored by officials, the Audubon Society said.

Piping plovers had disappeared from Illinois beaches around 1955, and the first chicks since then hatched in 2019 at Montrose Beach. The bird species is still considered endangered in the Great Lakes region.

“The chicks face an uphill battle for survival, but we remain cautiously optimistic that they will survive the next few weeks before beginning their first migration to wintering grounds,” the Lake County Audubon Society said.

The births come just a month after the city of Waukegan named the piping plover its official city bird.

“We will continue to support the protection and conservation of our lakefront and the unique dune and swale habitat crucial to the recovery of the Great Lakes piping plover and the many other plant and animal species that call the Lake Plain their home,” the city said in a statement.

To keep the nest and eggs safe, people are urged to respect the closed area boundaries, keep dogs on leashes and take trash with them at the end of their beach visit.

Blaze and Pepper’s nest is one of around 30 nests incubated in the wild across the Great Lakes region.

Chicks hatch throughout June and into July, according to Great Lakes Piping Plovers.

This month, a full clutch — four eggs — were hatched at Montrose Beach to piping plovers Imani and Searocket.