Medium large. Long wings, neck and legs. Sexes similar.
Male: Breeding: Upperparts, greyish-brown. Tail, darker distally with white tip and white outer feathers. Eye, dark brown. Forehead, face, sides of neck, throat, white. Flight feathers, dark brown with no, or only a faint, wing bar. Breastband, chestnut bordered below by black. Belly, undertail coverts, white. Underwing, greyish-white. Bill, black. Legs, yellowish or pinkish-yellow. Non-breeding: Buff in face darker and breastband may be mottled greyish-brown and buff, black border absent.
Female: Breeding: Similar to male, but breastband greyish-brown and more buff in face. Eyebrow is more distinct. Non-breeding: Buff in face darker and breastband may be mottled greyish-brown and buff, black border absent.
Immatures: Similar to female non-breeding, but buff in face darker and breastband may be mottled greyish-brown and buff, black border absent.
Migrant from Mongolia and Russia, arriving in northern Australia in large number, September - November, dispersing southward. Returns north about March.
Habitat
Usually inland, on open plains, bare, rolling countryside, ploughed fields, muddy or sandy wastes near inland swamps or tidal mudflats. Bare claypans. Margins of coastal marshes.
Australia, China (mainland), Christmas Island, Hong Kong (China), India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia (B), Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Russia (Asian), Singapore, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Timor-Leste (NB) (P), Vietnam.
Vagrant to Brunei Darussalam, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Greenland, Kazakhstan, New Zealand, Palau, Seychelles, South Korea, Taiwan (China), Thailand, Vanuatu.
Southern Siberia (Tuvinskaya and southern Transbaikalia) through western, northern and eastern Mongolia to extreme north-eastern China (northern Inner Mongolia and north-western Manchuria). Winters from Greater Sundas to north-western and north-central Australia, sparsely in south.
Oriental Plover (Charadrius veredus) [XC40557]
by Frank Lambert from Lake Nallan, Australia (call)
Oriental Plover (Charadrius veredus) [XC527274]
by James Lidster from Bulgan, \u00d6mn\u00f6govi, Mongolia (call, flight call)
Breeding Season (Guide)
Does not breed in Australia.
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
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O
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D
Subspecies
Sometimes placed in genus Eupoda. Formerly considered conspecific with Caspian Plover (Charadrius asiaticus). Probably best considered to form superspecies with Caspian Plover (Charadrius asiaticus), and possibly with Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus).
No subspecies.
Similar Species
Greater Sand Plover (Charadrius leschenaultii)
Non-breeding with non-breeding. Breastband smaller and browner. In flight, white wingbar is visible. Dark tip to tail much narrower. Bill, thicker, with a bulbous tip. Legs, mostly pale greenish grey but variable from yellowish to almost black. Lacks a white eyebrow.
Pacific Golden Plover (Pluvialis fulva)
Larger. Non-breeding with non-breeding. Upperparts, golden buff to cream spots. Breast, golden-brown to cream, mottled grey. Legs, grey-black.
Grey Plover (Pluvialis squatarola)
Larger. Non-breeding with non-breeding. Upperparts, brownish grey with white tips and edges to feathers. Face, breast, white mottled or finely streaked with brownish grey. Underwing, white, with black axillaries. Legs, black.
Australian Pratincole (Stiltia isabella)
Breeding with breeding. The chestnut of the breast extends to the belly. Non-breeding with non-breeding. Generally sandier upperparts. Rump is white. Tail is short and black. Bill is very short, decurved, red with a black tip. Lacks a white eyebrow.
Oriental Pratincole (Glareola maldivarum)
Non-breeding with non-breeding. Rump is white. Tail is forked. Bill is very short, decurved, scarlet with a black tip. Lacks a white eyebrow.
Caspian Plover (Charadrius asiaticus)
Slightly smaller. Non-breeding with non-breeding. In flight, upper wing has a pale wing bar on inner primaries, and under wing has whitish wing linings contrasting with brown flight feathers. Legs, usually olive grey but can be pinkish, yellow, or yellow brown to slate grey.
Caspian Plover (Charadrius asiaticus) is a rare vagrant to Australia. Currently only in NT or Queensland.
Compare Images
The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9
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