One of the 3 ringed plovers on WAnimals
Birds · Charadriiformes · Charadriidae
Little Ringed Plover
Charadrius dubius
The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary
A small wader with a rounded head, a black breast band, a black mask and a band of the same colour across the forehead. Its diagnostic feature is the yellow eye-ring, absent in the common ringed plover. Flesh-coloured legs and a short, dark bill.
Size
15 cm – 18 cm
Lifespan
3 years
Diet
Carnivore
Feeds mainly on other animals.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Social structure
In pairs
Usually lives in pairs, sometimes for life.
Sighting difficulty
Easy
Estimated population
The Spanish population is estimated at 33,050 pairs, though with a very wide confidence interval and a minimum of 4,000. The European one, at between 425,000 and 634,000 mature individuals
Fun facts
- GeneralIt feigns a broken wing to draw predators away from the nest.
- Faced with an intruder, the adults feign a broken wing: they hop on one leg, lie down on the ground with one wing outstretched and beat their wings against the ground to draw it away from the nest.
- Its specific epithet, dubius, means doubtful: it was given because of the controversy its classification generated.
- It frequently nests in working gravel pits and industrial areas, which makes it very vulnerable to machinery.
Life cycle & biology
- Skeleton type
- Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
- Habitat & environment
- Gravel pits, river shingle and reservoirs
- Size at birth
- The chicks are precocial: they move about and feed themselves soon after hatching
- Gestation / incubation
- 24 - 25 days
- Litter / clutch size
- 4 pear-shaped, extremely cryptic eggs, in a simple scrape on the ground lined with plant matter and small stones
Sources consulted: SEO/BirdLife (ficha y III Atlas de las aves en época de reproducción en España); IUCN Red List; Asturnatura; Lista Roja Europea de Aves 2021; SEO/BirdLife Cantabria (seguimiento de la población reproductora); Blasco-Zumeta y Heinze, Atlas de Identificación de las Aves de Aragón
Where to find it
See its range on the interactive mapBest time: From April to September, mainly in June, on gravel banks and sandbars
Where to watch it
Parques y spots de buceo donde se ha documentado esta especie — se muestran 10 de 207 documentados.
Related species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Little Ringed Plover — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Kentish Plover
Charadrius alexandrinus
Least ConcernEuropean Golden Plover
Pluvialis apricaria
Near ThreatenedNorthern Lapwing
Vanellus vanellus
Common Ringed Plover
Charadrius hiaticula
Grey Plover
Pluvialis squatarola
Dotterel
Charadrius morinellus
Keep exploring
Based on what we already know about little ringed plover.
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