Chicago piping plover chick spotted wandering Wisconsin beach

Chicago's piping plover chick was spotted in Wisconsin this week as it prepares to journey south.

Nagamo, the only surviving chick from the full clutch of eggs laid at Montrose Beach this summer, was spotted hanging out at a beach in Racine, Wisconsin, on Sunday.

The chick, who should soon begin its migration south, is first taking some time to explore the Great Lakes.

"It is hard to predict when Nagamo will start heading south," Tamima Itani, lead volunteer for Chicago Piping Plovers, told the Chicago Sun-Times on Wednesday. "Hatch-year piping plovers like Nagamo take time exploring areas in the Great Lakes before heading south."

Last week, Nagamo was seen leaving Chicago but then days later returned with a cousin from Waukegan. The chicks explored Montrose Beach together for a few days before leaving once again.

Nagamo’s parents, Imani and Sea Rocket, have already left Montrose Beach to begin their journey south.

Female piping plovers tend to leave the Great Lakes beginning in early July. Males and chicks might stay around as late as the end of August, according to the Great Lakes Piping Plover organization.

Great Lakes piping plovers usually winter along the Atlantic coast of South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. Some plovers will winter along the Gulf Coast of Texas.

The Great Lakes Piping Plover Recovery Effort said Nagamo was spotted in Racine on Sunday.

It's common for chicks to wander before migrating, while adult piping plovers head straight south after nesting, Itani said.

"In 2017, the year they hatched in Michigan, Monty and Rose did just that, traveling from Michigan all the way to Waukegan in Illinois," Itani said. "Nagamo’s dad, Imani, also did exploration of his own during his hatch year, also going to Waukegan and spending some time there."

Known for their “pip-lo” song, piping plovers have been designated as an endangered species since 1984. The clutch of eggs from which Nagamo was born offered a promising start to the species’ breeding season in Chicago until the three other chicks died.

The birds grow to about 7 inches long with a wingspan of 15 inches. They live, on average, five to six years, but some have been documented to live up to 11 years, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.