LOUIS HEAD — Two pairs of endangered piping plovers have raised a total of seven young this year on a popular Shelburne County beach.

Some say the blessed events are nothing short of miraculous.

That’s because only about four dozen pairs of the birds breed in Nova Scotia, says Sue Abbott with Bird Studies Canada in Dartmouth.

And it is rare indeed to have more than one nesting pair on a beach, she said.

Cottagers and area residents have watched out for the plover families at Louis Head beach, northeast of Lockeport, as the chicks hatched, learned to run around and recently graduated to flight.

One plover nest was destroyed by high tides in late May, said cottage owners Peter and Denyse Bagnell, who along with their family have been watching the birds’ progress.

The plover pair re-nested and was soon joined by another plover couple that nested nearby.

One pair also nested near a boardwalk, which was a challenge for everyone using the beach.

A vacationing family from Ontario helped monitor the birds and alerted biologists when the eggs hatched.

Other cottagers and those using the beach helped spread the word about the nestlings, urging folks to watch out for the plovers, who need to incubate their eggs for at least four weeks, said Abbott.

“From April through September, piping plovers can be on beaches. And this time of year, young are fattening up and resting to prepare for migration, as are their parents.”

Overall, she said, plovers had a good year in Nova Scotia. About 46 pairs bred, which is a 31 per cent increase since a record low in 2005 but still below the provincial population recovery target of 60 pairs, Abbott said.

The piping plover is listed as an endangered species under both the Federal Species at Risk Act and the Nova Scotia Endangered Species Act.

Habitat loss is often blamed on increased human activities on beaches. Something like keeping dogs on a leash is important, Abbott said.

“Also, at this time of year, if you see flocks of birds, rather than walking right through them, try to walk around them.”

Piping plovers generally don’t fly if they don’t have to.

The young plovers spend time in the dry sand, where they rest, but they come down to wet sand to feed. A lot of their food, like small bugs, is found on or below the surface of the wet sand. Piping plovers also feed on flies that live in kelp, Abbott said.

This is the first time in recent memory there have been two nesting plover pairs on the beach, said Peter Bagnell.

“It’s rare.”

The beach has a fair amount of human activity because of its popularity, but talking with users about the nests has a lot to do with the improving survival rates of the plovers, he said.

“The cottage owners are involved and the residents, the local people who come every day for walks, are well aware of it too,” said Denyse Bagnell.

The high level of co-operation at Louis Head beach shows that it is possible to share the habitat while helping an endangered species, Abbott said.

(bmedel@herald.ca)