Piping plovers winter on the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Coast from Florida to North Carolina and some Caribbean Islands.  Breeding occurs on coastal beaches from Newfoundland and southeastern Quebec to North Carolina. 

Piping plovers once were common along the Atlantic Coast during much of the 19th century, but nearly disappeared due to excessive hunting for the millinery trade. Following passage of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in 1918, numbers recovered to a 20th Century peak which occurred during the 1940s. The current population decline is attributed to increased development and recreational use of beaches since the end of World War II. The most recent surveys place the Atlantic population at fewer than 1400 pairs.  The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWCC) list this species as endangered and threatened, respectively.

As with the snowy plover, protection and management of coastal beach and dune habitats at JOE’s coastal developments is extremely beneficial to this winter migrant.  Plover management plans at development sites help to minimize disturbance and reduces stress on wintering plovers.  JOE biologists also conduct winter plover surveys and identify banded individuals as part of a nationwide monitoring program.