Long-billed Plover

The Long-billed Plover, Charadrius placidus, is a medium-sized wading bird, with adults measuring approximately 19–20 centimeters in length and weighing between 41–70 grams. Both sexes exhibit a grayish-brown back, a white belly and throat, and a distinctive black band running from eye to eye across the forehead. The bill is about 2 centimeters long, and the eyes are encircled by a yellow ring, with a white stripe above.

Identification Tips

To identify the Long-billed Plover, look for its white forehead with a black band, a black breast band below the throat, and the yellow ring around the eyes. The male's breeding plumage features a more pronounced black band on the forehead and breast, and a more distinct white eyestripe extending behind the eye compared to the female. Juveniles lack the dark forehead band and have a narrower breast band.

Habitat

This species favors river shores, streams, and lakes with small, round pebbles and rocks. They nest on temporary shingle islands or pebble spits in meandering mountain rivers, avoiding frequent flooding and preferring areas with patches of stones and pebbles sized 30–60 millimeters.

Distribution

The Long-billed Plover is found across South and East Asia, with breeding grounds in parts of China, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, and far east Russia. It winters in regions including eastern Nepal, northeast India, Indochina, southern China, Japan, Taiwan, Myanmar, Malaysia, and Thailand.

Behaviour

Long-billed Plovers are monogamous, with pairs establishing and defending territories during the breeding season. They exhibit various behaviors such as wing flapping, flying over territories, and emitting calls to ward off intruders. They are known to return to the same breeding sites annually.

Song & Calls

The species has a repertoire of calls, becoming particularly vocal during the breeding season. Calls include a rapid "fi-fi-fi-fi-fi" in flight, a quiet "gee gee" during male displays, a single rising "pyuoo-" when vigilant, and a "pip-pip-pip" when threatened.

Breeding

Breeding begins in late February or early March, with males creating shallow pits for nesting. The female lays a clutch of four eggs, which are incubated by both parents. Hatchlings are precocial and ready to fly at 40 days old, with fledglings remaining with their parents for a short period before migrating.

Similar Species

The Long-billed Plover can be confused with the Little-ringed Plover due to range overlap and similar appearance. However, the Long-billed Plover is larger, with a longer and thicker bill, and less distinct yellow eye-ring compared to the Little-ringed Plover.

Diet and Feeding

The diet primarily consists of aquatic insects and other invertebrates, such as midges, dragonflies, beetle larvae, flies, and earthworms. They forage along shorelines, capturing prey with their long bills.

Conservation status

The Long-billed Plover is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Despite a global population decline, the rate is not severe enough to classify the species as vulnerable. Conservation efforts should focus on protecting and restoring breeding habitats to prevent future rapid declines.