The endangered Great Lakes Piping Plover population is federally protected. Habitat loss due to beach development and other causes reduced the population to 13 pairs in the 1980s, and all of them were in Michigan. Before then, 500 to 800 pairs of piping plovers had nested in the Great Lakes Region, including in Illinois. The Waukegan area used to be the primary nesting area for the plovers in Illinois. Conservation efforts have helped the species rebound to 81 breeding pairs last summer, the highest number since the species was declared endangered, according to the Great Lakes Piping Plover Conservation Team.
Sharing Our Shore and the Return of the Piping Plover to Waukegan Shores chronicles the life of Blaze and Pepper — two charismatic Great Lakes Piping Plovers who were captive-reared and released on the shores of Waukegan in 2023. Against all odds, they returned in 2024 and successfully fledged three chicks — Juniper, Sage, and Willow — marking a remarkable milestone for this endangered species and for our local conservation community. The film showcases the dedicated efforts behind Lake County Audubon Society’s conservation program, Sharing Our Shore – Waukegan, and the special role it plays in raising awareness and protecting the unique lakefront habitat vital to the plovers’ survival and success.
The film was written and produced by Carolyn Lueck, who will introduce the film and will host a Q&A after the screening. Along with fellow volunteer monitors, she will share firsthand experiences from the 2024 and 2025 nesting seasons and offer insights into what it takes to protect a federally endangered species right here in Lake County, Illinois.
Carolyn Lueck is President of the Lake County Audubon Society and Committee Chair of their Sharing Our Shore – Waukegan initiative. She started monitoring the endangered Great Lakes Piping Plovers in 2023. After spending one morning on the beach monitoring four captive-reared piping plover fledglings that were released on a beach in Waukegan, IL, she knew her life would never be the same.