Ringed Plover

I was thinking the other day, as I link to Stewart from Australian and Anni from America on their bird memes, and I  post an Australian bird every Wednesday on my blog, I will post a single bird from anywhere in the world on Saturday's.  I will be starting with some waders from Northern Ireland although they can be found on many parts of the world.  I have chosen the Ringed Plover as my first bird as I particularly love to see it.

Most of the photographs were taken a few years ago at Newcastle Beach, Co. Down, Northern Ireland.  I will add some information regarding the Ringed Plover between the shots.  Now I am sure you  are wondering why am I showing you a stony beach!  Well look closer because that is where four waders were resting. There are Red Shank, Turnstone, Ringed Plover and Sanderling.

Can you see them?

Don't worry if you can't as I will show you them in a minute.

One of the most familiar wading birds on European shores, the Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula) has a typical plover appearance with bold black and white markings. A black band runs around the breast and hindneck, and another runs across the cheeks, through the eyes and over the forehead. The underparts are a contrasting white, while the upperparts are a camouflaged brownish-grey. A yellow ring surrounds each eye and the short beak is bright orange with a black tip.  Look at the size differences between these birds above.

The Ringed Plover is a somewhat small and dumpy bird, with short legs, a round head, large eyes and a robust, compact body.   See size difference with Sanderling.

Size: Length: 18 – 20 cm  Wingspan: 48 – 57 cm  Weight: 42 – 78

If a potential predator approaches its nest, the Common Ringed Plover will feign a broken wing to lure the intruder away.

Males tend to perform more nighttime egg incubation, while females incubate more during the day.

Eggs are laid between April and mid-July in a nest which is no more than a shallow scrape in the ground lined with pebbles and vegetation. The nests are usually fairly isolated from others, but in areas with high food abundance, the nests may be arranged in loose groups, with between 5 and 100 metres between each one.

There is a high degree of site fidelity, meaning that more often than not, breeding birds will return to the same area to nest each year. The parents are extremely aggressive around the nest and will fiercely defend it by calling loudly and swooping at intruders.

 Usually four eggs are laid per brood, at intervals of one to three days, and are subsequently incubated by both the male and female for some 21 to 27 days. The chicks fledge after around 24 days in the nest, but few survive past their first year, although those that do may live to 10 years of age.

Like other members of the Charadriidae family, a group of birds which includes the plovers, lapwings and dotterels, this bird forages in a distinct way: standing and watching, running forward and pecking, and then standing and watching again.

 

The Ringed Plover forages on open ground, at both day and night, for a variety of invertebrates, including crustaceans, isopods and various insects.

Relying heavily on its strong eyesight to locate its prey, food is plucked from on or close to the surface with its short beak. Underground prey is enticed to come to the surface by ‘foot-trembling’, whereby the bird stands on one foot and rapidly taps the other on the ground, imitating the vibrations of rainfall.

The sexes are similar in appearance, although the breast band is usually tinged with brown on the female, but juveniles are cryptically patterned with brown and black speckling.

 Small feeding territories may be defended from other plovers, particularly on intertidal flats which are rich in food, but when not foraging, birds congregate to roost together, often close to the feeding ground just above the high water mark. Usually the Ringed Plover collects into small flocks of up to 50, but on occasions large groups of between 1,200 and 1,500 birds have been seen.

A group of plovers has many collective nouns, including a "brace", "congregation", "deceit", "ponderance" and "wing" of plovers.

I hope you enjoyed this post and perhaps next Saurday I will show you one of the other waders we have seen today from Newcsatle.

Thanks you for visiting.

 

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