04/25/2026
This is the story of Phoenix the Phootless, a rather celebrated Piping Plover that lost both his feet when they got entangled in discarded fishing line at a Florida beach.
I was photographing a sprite little Piping Plover in the shallows at Ft DeSoto park one February morning. The bird was quite adept at finding and consuming marine worms, so I did not notice his disability.
A local approached me, of course spooking the bird, and asked me if the Plover was Phoenix. I replied that the bird and I were not on a first name basis. She said, “He’s unmistakeable. He has no feet. He’s Phoenix the Footless, spelled with a Ph. Phootless!”
So I examined my photos closely and sure enough, it was Phoenix.
She explained that the bird’s legs had gotten tangled in fishing filament in 2023 and miraculously had survived, even after losing both feet.
His survival is quite amazing as Piping Plovers, like many small shorebirds, hunt by running along the shoreline until they see a morsel they can dig out of the sand with their little beaks.
Phoenix now runs on little nubs at the end of his legs. What makes this tale all the more fantastic is that Piping Plovers are considered a threatened species, bordering on endangered. There now are only about 8,000 piping plovers remaining, having lost over half of its population in recent decades.
Increasingly, shorebirds are losing feet and toes to "stringfoot," a condition caused by fishing line, nets, and plastic debris wrapping around limbs. This debris cuts off circulation, causing necrosis and self-amputation, leaving birds with stumps.
So if you are a beachcomber, if you see any washed up fishing line or other string-like debris, please pick it up and properly dispose of it. Phoenix’ story has a happy ending. Others may not be so lucky or resilient.
