Species of Concern
Grey Plover
Pluvialis squatarola
Also known as: Black-Bellied Plover, Soldier Bird
Habitat
Ground
Diet
Invertebrate
Active Time
Diurnal
Size
250 g
About This Species
Look for this stocky shorebird on coastal mudflats, beaches and estuaries, where it stands motionless before making short runs to snatch invertebrates from the surface. It is most numerous in winter and during migration, often mixed into flocks of other waders, and its black underwing patches are a useful flight identification feature in silhouette. A rising tide, which concentrates birds onto remaining exposed mud, is the most reliable time to watch it feed.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- As a globally vulnerable species, give this bird a wide, generous berth of at least 50-100 metres and use a hide, vehicle or long lens rather than walking directly toward a flock on open mudflats.
- Migratory shorebirds and their key wintering and stopover sites receive legal protection in many countries along its flyway, though the strength of enforcement and specific distances vary by jurisdiction.
- Flocks that take flight repeatedly are burning critical energy reserves needed for migration, so if birds become alert or start moving away, stop and retreat immediately rather than continuing forward.
VUAvesCharadriiformesCharadriidae
Seasonal Activity
2,254,096 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Charadriidae
Traits
- Diet
- Invertebrate
- Foraging
- Ground
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Body mass
- 250 g
Photo
Wikimedia Commons / Wikimedia Commons
CC-BY-SA-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.