Maine officials say the effort to protect a rare bird species has met success with a record number of piping plover hatchlings.
Maine Audubon says beaches across the state saw 128 piping plover fledglings, a record number since monitoring began in 1981. The Portland Press Herald reports Ogunquit Beach ended up seeing the most fledglings, with 24 produced by 11 nesting pairs.
There were 15 fledglings each at Wells Beach and at Scarborough's Western Beach.
Maine Audubon official Laura Minich Zitske says the success of the plovers this year is thanks in large part to partnerships with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and landowners and volunteers.
The 100-plus fledgling number means Maine is still meeting conservation targets for the shorebird species.
