Charadriidae – Plovers, Lapwings & Dotterels

The Charadriidae (Plovers & Lapwings) family is made up of waders that are sufficiently distinctive to merit their own family. The order Charadriiformes also includes Pluvianellidae (Magellanic Plover), Chionidae  (Sheathbills), Burhinidae (Thick-knees & Stone Curlews), Pluvianidae (Egyptian Plover), Recurvirostridae (Stilts & Avocets) Ibidorhynchidae (Ibisbill), Haematopodidae (Oystercatchers), Pedionomidae (Plains Wanderer), Thinocoridae (Seedsnipes), Rostratulidae (Painted Snipe), Jacanidae (Jacanas), Scolopacidae (Sandpipers), Turnicidae (Buttonquails), Dromadidae (Crab-Plover), Glareolidae (Coursers & Pratincoles), Stercorariidae (Skuas), Alcidae (Auks) and Laridae (Gulls, Terns & Skimmers).

The Charadriidae bird family includes the plovers, dotterels, and lapwings, about 68 species in all.

Caspian Plover Anarhynchus asiaticus – ©Dubi Shapiro

They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short, thick necks and long, usually pointed, wings, but most species of lapwing may have more rounded wings. Their bills are usually straight (except for the Wrybill) and short, their toes are short, their hind toe could be reduced or absent, depending on species. Most Charadriidae also have relatively short tails; the Killdeer is the exception.

Two-banded Plover Anarhynchus falklandicus – ©Dubi Shapiro

In most genera, very little sexual dimorphism occurs between sexes. They range in size from the Collared Plover, at 26 grams and 14cm, to the Masked Lapwing, at 368 grams and 35cm. They are distributed through open country worldwide, mostly in habitats near water, although there are some exceptions: the Inland Dotterel, for example, prefers stony ground in the deserts of central and western Australia.

Diademed Sandpiper-Plover Phegornis mitchellii – ©Dubi Shapiro

They hunt by sight, rather than by feel, which is the way longer-billed waders like snipe do. Foods eaten include aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates such as insects, worms, molluscs and crustaceans depending on habitat, and are usually obtained by a run-and-pause technique, rather than the steady probing of some other wader groups. They also feed on plant material.

Forbes’s Plover Thinornis forbesi – ©Dubi Shapiro

It has recently been realised that many will even feed at night when the moon is bright; this can account for a significant proportion of their foraging time. They occur throughout the world, from the tideline to mountain meadows. Although classified as waders (and some do occur near water, particularly in the non-breeding season), they are really birds of open grassland.

Three-banded Plover Thinornis tricollaris – ©Bird-Photo-Tours ASIA

 The vast majority of Charadriidae have a socially monogamous mating system. Some, such as Northern Lapwings, are polygynous, others, such as Mountain Plovers have a rapid multiple-clutch system that can be accompanied by sequential polyandry. In Eurasian Dotterels, females compete for males and males provide all parental care. While breeding, they defend their territories with highly visible aerial displays.

Yellow-wattled Lapwing Vanellus malabaricus – ©Bird-Photo-Tours ASIA

Most plovers lay two to four eggs into the nest, which is usually a shallow scrape in the open ground, and incubate the clutch for 21 to 30 days. In species where both parents incubate the eggs, females and males vary in the way they share their incubation duties, both within and between species. In some pairs, parents exchange on the nest in the morning and in the evening so that their incubation rhythm follows a 24-hour day, in others females and males exchange up to 20 times a day.

Long-billed Plover Thinornis placidus – ©Bird-Photo-Tours ASIA

They are protective over their eggs and offspring. The parents protect their young by uttering an alarm call, performing distraction display and they may even attack the predator or intruder. The chicks are precocial; their parents do not feed them.

Pacific Golden Plover Pluvialis fulva – ©Bird-Photo-Tours ASIA

The commonest plover in Britain is the Ringed Plover, which breeds on sandy and shingle beaches around the coasts of Britain, though its cryptic colours mean that it can be hard to spot! The Lapwing leads something of a double life, being generally found on inland wet grassland in summer and around our coasts in winter.