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Kentish Plover - BirdForum Opus

Revision as of 11:48, 25 October 2015 by Deliatodd-18346 (talk | contribs) (Some extra info. Picture positions adjusted to avoide layout problems. References updated)
Photo by tarabilla
Almeria, Spain
Charadrius alexandrinus

Identification

15-17.5 cm (6-7 in)

  • Upperparts greyish brown
  • Underparts white
  • Black legs

Female: has a grey head, lacking any black markings

Similar Species

Female
Photo by Mark Bruce
Old salt ponds, Budai area, Taiwan, November 2008

Other similar Charadrius species lack the white hind collar and black patches on the sides of the breast.

Distribution

Found in Europe, Africa and Asia east to Indonesia.

Taxonomy

Snowy Plover from the Americas was formerly considered conspecific.

A form discovered in southeast Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, China) and commonly named White-faced Plover may belong to this species or form a full species. It seems that this birds were originally described as dealbatus, a name that later was accidentally transferred to the dealbatus subspecies of today.

Subspecies

Juvenile
Photo by charelli
Brouwersdam, The Netherlands, December 2007

There are 3 subspecies1:

  • C. a. alexandrinus:
  • C. a. dealbatus:
  • C. a. seebohmi:

Habitat

Sandy coasts and brackish inland lakes, and is uncommon on fresh water.

Behaviour

White-faced Plover: a full species?
Photo by martinuk
Laem Pak Bia, Phetchaburi Province, Thailand, March 2011

Breeding

It nests in a ground scrape and lays 3-5 eggs.

Diet

Diet includes insects and other invertebrates.

Vocalisation

<flashmp3>Charadrius alexandrinus (song).mp3</flashmp3>
Listen in an external program

References

  1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2015. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2015, with updates to August 2015. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
  2. Avibase
  3. Collins Bird Guide ISBN 0 00 219728
  4. Birdforum thread discussing AOU NACC proposal to split Snowy Plover and other taxonomic changes

Recommended Citation

External Links


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