- Little Ringed Plover
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Little Ringed Plover 
Conservation status Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Charadriiformes Family: Charadriidae Genus: Charadrius Species: C. dubius Binomial name Charadrius dubius
Scopoli, 1786The Little Ringed Plover (Charadrius dubius) is a small plover. Adults have a grey-brown back and wings, a white belly, and a white breast with one black neckband. They have a brown cap, a white forehead, a black mask around the eyes with white above and a short dark bill. The legs are flesh-coloured and the toes are all webbed.
This species differs from the larger Ringed Plover in leg colour, the head pattern, and the presence of a clear yellow eye-ring.
Their breeding habitat is open gravel areas near freshwater, including gravel pits, islands and river edges in Europe and western Asia. They nest on the ground on stones with little or no plant growth. Both male and female take turn to incubate the eggs.
They are migratory and winter in Africa. These birds forage for food on muddy areas, usually by sight. They eat insects and worms.
The Little Ringed Plover is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.
References
- ^ BirdLife International (2004). Charadrius dubius. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 11 May 2006.
External links
- Little Ringed Plover Image documentation
- Identification guide (PDF) by Javier Blasco-Zumeta
- Avibase
Categories:- IUCN Red List least concern species
- Charadrius
- Birds of Western Australia
- Birds of India
- Birds of Pakistan
- Birds of Europe
- Birds of Turkey
- British Isles coastal fauna
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