Overview

Black-bellied Plover: This medium-sized shorebird has black upperparts vividly marked with a white spot on each feather. It has a black face, throat and belly and white forehead and crown that extends over the eye, down the back and sides of the neck. Vent and wing stripe visible in flight. Strong direct flight with powerful rapid wing beats. Feeds on marine worms and insects. Sexes are similar.

Black-bellied Plover: Breeds in western and northern Alaska and Arctic Canada. Spends winters mainly along the coasts from British Columbia and Massachusetts southward to coastal Mexico and the West Indies. Breeds on tundra; spends winters on beaches, mudflats, marshes, lakeshores, and plowed fields.

Black-bellied Plover H1

Call is a shrill, high-pitched series of whistles.

Black-bellied Plover C1

Flight call is a three syllabled "pee-oh-wee".

Similar Sounding

Common Ringed Plover S1

Call is a whistled "tu-weea".

Pacific Golden-Plover A3

"Peeo-weeuh" calls made by a male in a display flight.

Voice Text

"pee-oh-wee", kiuuu-di-duu", "bibibibibibi", "klee-ee"

• The Black-bellied Plover is the only American plover that has a hind toe on its foot. The hind toe, however, is so small that it is difficult to see in the field.
• They are usually the first to take flight when a flock of shorebirds is approached. When disturbed, they tend to fly out over water, circle, and land again behind the observer.
• Also known as Gray Plovers, they are the largest of the North American plovers. They can be found on six different continents during the winter season, but breed only on the Arctic tundra.
• A group of plovers has many collective nouns, including a "brace", "congregation", "deceit", "ponderance" and "wing" of plovers.

• American Golden-Plover
• Lesser Sand-Plover
• Mountain Plover
• Pacific Golden-Plover
• European Golden-Plover

Lapwings and Plovers (Charadriidae)

ORDER

The taxonomic order CHARADRIIFORMES (pronounced kah-RAH-dree-ih-FOR-meez) is composed of waterbirds such as the auks, gulls, long-toed Jacanas, and the plovers.

FAMILY TAXONOMY

In the lapwings and plovers family, Charadriidae (pronounced kar-ad-RYE-uh-dee), there are sixty-seven species in ten genera distributed nearly worldwide.

SOUTH PACIFIC-PALAU

Nine species in three genera have occurred in the South Pacific and Palau. All are migrants.

NORTH AMERICA

There are eighteen species of lapwings and plovers in three genera in North America. Members of this family include the well- known Killdeer, the pale Piping Plover, and the golden-plovers.

KNOWN FOR

The Killdeer is known for its distraction displays around its nest. Adult Killdeers noisily feign a broken wing to attract the attention of anyone or anything that comes too close to their nests.

PHYSICAL

Plovers are small birds with rounded, pigeon-like heads, long, pointed wings for fast flight, and except for the long-tailed Killdeer, short tails. They have fairly long legs with short toes and rather short bills.

COLORATION

Dull colors such as brown, gray, black, and white are the most frequent colors seen in lapwings and plovers plumages. Dark colors are usually found on the upperparts and white on the underparts with several species having black markings on the head and neck. Exceptions are the handsome breeding plumages of the Black-bellied Plover and golden-plovers (these show black on the underparts), and the Eurasian Dotterel with rufous underparts.

GEOGRAPHIC HABITAT

The lapwing and plover family occurs throughout North America in non-forest habitats. The most common species, the Killdeer, occupies almost any sort of bare or sparsely vegetated ground from extensive lawns to parking lots and baseball fields. The Mountain Plover of the short grass prairie also prefers little vegetation but is much more particular in habitat choice and much less common. Other plover species occur in wet fields, beaches, mud flats, and salt pans.

MIGRATION

Plovers are mostly long distance migrants that winter from the southern United States to Argentina in South America.

HABITS

Lapwings and plovers form pairs during the breeding season, but occur in flocks during migration and winter. At all times of the year, members of this family have a distinctive mode of foraging whereby they take a few quick steps, then pause to stoop and pick an insect from the ground.

CONSERVATION

The Piping Plover is considered to be near threatened as its populations have declined in much of its range because of disturbance and development of the beaches, sandy shorelines, and sand bars this species requires.

INTERESTING FACTS

The Semipalmated Plover gets its name from having partially webbed feet, a feature this small bird makes use of by occasionally swimming in the water. The golden-plovers undertake incredible migrations; the Pacific Golden-Plover to Hawaii and other Pacific islands from its Alaskan breeding grounds, and the American Golden-Plover from the Arctic tundra to the pampas of Argentina.

Author

Artist

Yury Lisyak