Wildlife Diversity Program Quarterly Report for April–June 2025
The Jersey Shore Flocks to NC - Banded Piping Plover Spotted in Carteret County by Carmen Johnson, Waterbird Biologist; Claire Reilly and Jacob Krueger, Waterbird Technicians
W hile conducting surveys in Carteret County in mid-May, the Waterbird Team spotted a Piping Plover wearing some very fash- ionable accessories—black, gray, and orange leg bands on the upper legs. The unique combination of colors and placement on the legs indi- cate where a bird was originally banded and which agency did the band- ing. The bird, whose nickname is ‘Caraxes,’ hatched in New Jersey at Barnegat Light Restoration Area, a state park on the northern tip of Long Beach Island in 2024. Caraxes was banded by the New Jersey Department of Fish & Wildlife (NJDFW) along with two siblings. Sub- sequently, all three birds successfully fledged. Each year NJDFW chooses a theme to name the Piping Plovers that hatch in the state, and, in 2024, the theme was Game of Thrones. The chicks in Caraxes’ brood were each named after a dragon from the series. Her brother, Meleys, has been spotted back in New Jersey, but the whereabouts of her other sibling, Sunfyre, are unknown. This was the first resighting of Caraxes since she fledged. NCWRC and the National Park Service are monitor- ing areas near where Caraxes was seen in the hope that this Jersey bird has decided to nest on the North Carolina coast this season.
JACOB KRUEGER/NCWRC
Top: Banded Piping Plover ‘Caraxes.’ Bottom: Jacob Krueger, volunteer Pierre Beaurang, and Claire Reilly count and monitor birds from a shallow water vantage point to minimize disturbance to the birds as they forage.
CARMEN JOHNSON/NCWRC
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