Pennsylvania HR 580: A Resolution designating July 18, 2026, as "Piping Plover Day" in Pennsylvania.

Bill Text

PRINTER'S NO. 3712
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE RESOLUTION
No. 580
Session of
2026
INTRODUCED BY BIZZARRO, JUNE 25, 2026
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL AND NATURAL RESOURCE
PROTECTION, JUNE 26, 2026
A RESOLUTION
Designating July 18, 2026, as "Piping Plover Day" in
Pennsylvania.
WHEREAS, The piping plover (Charadrius melodus) is a
shorebird endemic to North America in three populations which
are protected under the Endangered Species Act, as amended, by
the United States Fish and Wildlife Service; and
WHEREAS, Presque Isle State Park is a designated Important
Bird Area and one of the most significant sites in the Great
Lakes region for shorebirds, including plovers; and
WHEREAS, The Department of Conservation and Natural
Resource's habitat management at Presque Isle is a collaborative
effort among State and Federal agencies and conservation
partners that combines habitat restoration, active monitoring,
protective measures and public education to support the recovery
of the Great Lakes piping plover population in Pennsylvania; and
WHEREAS, Gull Point at Presque Isle State Park is a Natural
Heritage Area identified as critical habitat for species and
natural communities of concern, supporting at least 53 species
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of concern in this Commonwealth; and
WHEREAS, There are an estimated 4,000 piping plover pairs
worldwide; and
WHEREAS, The piping plover is a native shorebird to this
Commonwealth, requiring sparsely vegetated and wide beach
habitat with low human disturbance on Lake Erie; and
WHEREAS, Recreational beach use and development contributed
to piping plover population declines across the Great Lakes; and
WHEREAS, In 1986, the Great Lakes piping plover population,
of which Pennsylvania is a part, was protected as endangered
under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended; and
WHEREAS, The Great Lakes piping plover population was 88
breeding pairs in 2025; and
WHEREAS, The piping plover was extirpated from this
Commonwealth by the mid-1950s; and
WHEREAS, The United States Fish and Wildlife Service
designated 35 critical habitat units for Great Lakes piping
plover in 2001, including 3.7 miles along Lake Erie at Presque
Isle State Park; and
WHEREAS, After Federal protection, significant piping plover
research led to successful conservation that steadily increased
the population throughout the Great Lakes; and
WHEREAS, Young piping plovers began visiting historic habitat
in the early 2000s, including Presque Isle State Park; and
WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania Game Commission sought to
understand limiting factors to piping plovers returning as
nesting species in this Commonwealth; and
WHEREAS, The Presque Isle State Park Management Plan
highlights piping plover conservation needs; and
WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania Game Commission contracted the
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Presque Isle State Park Piping Plover Recovery Assessment,
completed in 2007, that outlined needs to enhance recolonization
potential; and
WHEREAS, Presque Isle State Park and Western Pennsylvania
Conservancy removed invasive vegetation and enhanced piping
plover habitat in 2011 and thereafter; and
WHEREAS, Habitat protection and enhancement for piping plover
supports many rare plants and other beach-associated animals,
such as State endangered common tern, the federally threatened
red knot and dozens of migratory shorebirds in decline; and
WHEREAS, In 2017, two piping plover pairs returned to nest at
Presque Isle State Park, 62 years after the last known nesting
in Pennsylvania; and
WHEREAS, In 2019, the Pennsylvania Game Commission designated
the piping plover as endangered; and
WHEREAS, Pennsylvania has supported 20 piping plover pairs
and fledged 47 chicks through 2025; and
WHEREAS, 2026 marks the 10th consecutive nesting season for
piping plovers in Pennsylvania; and
WHEREAS, An estimated 5 million people visit Presque Isle
State Park annually; and
WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania Piping Plover and Common Tern
Partnership is celebrating the 10th nesting anniversary
milestone and Pennsylvania's contribution to Great Lakes piping
plover recovery during the Pennsylvania Piping Plover Fest on
July 18, 2026, at Presque Isle State Park; therefore be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives designate July
18, 2026, as "Piping Plover Day" in Pennsylvania.
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