Golden plover. Plover bird - what kind of bird? Features and habitat of the plover
The golden plover cannot boast of a bright long tail or exotic fabulous plumage. But this migratory bird is expected and loved in many countries with a harsh climate. For example, in Iceland it is believed that she brings spring on her wings. With the return of flocks of golden plovers, the onset of heat is associated.
Short description
The golden plover is a bird from the order Charadriiformes. The order includes many families united by the name Plovers, and the genus Plovers includes at least 4 species. Specifically, the golden plover, in Latin Pluvialis apricaria, is classified as a southern subspecies.
The golden plover is not very large in size. The length of her body usually does not exceed 29 cm. The maximum weight that has been recorded is 220 g. The wingspan of a bird is from 65 to 76 cm. The golden plover looks a little awkward. The bird has a small rounded head, a massive body and elongated thin legs.
Color
The color of a bird changes throughout life. The upper side (head, neck, back and part of the tail) is gray-brown with variegated golden patches. Such plumage helps the golden plover to merge perfectly with the surrounding nature, hiding from enemies. During the mating season, males appear ornaments of black feathers, bordered by a white contrasting stripe. A black spot can begin on the throat, just under the beak, and stretch through the entire abdomen to the very tail. Contrasting colors highlight males and attract females. The female, like the male, also has darker plumage on the abdomen. But it is not so dense and black, so it is not so noticeable.
The breeding color lasts for males almost until the end of August. Gradually it fades, being replaced by a "winter" feather. In nesting time (from mid to late June) there is still a beautiful black apron, and before departure (early September), the change of outfit is completely completed.
The young golden plover is colored slightly differently. In chicks, the abdomen is covered with a white delicate feather. And the back is gray-golden, with thin white stripes. Juveniles have a uniformly yellow color of the breast and belly with small dark scales. Young males do not have a black apron.
The golden plover acquires an adult color in a year. At this time, only the condition of the flight and tail feathers distinguishes the young from the old relatives. Older ones are somewhat worn.
In a bird whose photo was taken in flight, the difference in color of the upper and lower parts of the wing is clearly visible. In the golden plover in breeding plumage, and in winter color, the lower part of the wing is white, with brownish feathers at the very end.
Spreading
Golden plovers prefer open swampy areas, mountain meadows, wastelands or tundra. Distribution area - Northern Europe. Birds winter in the British Isles and on the Western and Southern coasts of Europe. In fact, it is found from the territories of Iceland and Great Britain, to the center of Siberia. In Central Europe, the bird has almost disappeared.
In general, it is most convenient to observe birds from the Plover family on wattled coastal shallows. These areas of land are flooded during high tides, and after low tides a large amount of food remains on them.
What do they eat
The diet of this species of birds is very diverse. The main menu includes insects, worms and snails. This food can be found in large quantities on the ground. The golden plover eats beetles, spiders and various insects in large numbers. It can snack on medium-sized specimens of locust. Stopping to rest during migration, the golden plover feeds on molluscs and crustaceans. Plant foods are also present in the diet, but in small quantities. These can be seeds, green plants and marsh berry species.
Lifestyle
Golden plovers often live in colonies, which include representatives not only of their own species, but also of others. It can be curlews or snails. The species returns to nesting areas at the height of snowmelt. The nest of the bird is organized in the recesses of the ground. Most often they master marshy mounds (hummocks) or the foot of pines. Places are chosen non-grassy, avoid the proximity of shrubs and damp watery areas. However, very dry lands with sparse vegetation are also not to the liking of golden plovers. Many plovers return to the last year's nesting area. The period of mating and pair formation is spring.
Birds fly out for fishing during the day, but if there is little food, then golden plovers can hunt in the evening.
The spring migration of Golden Plovers to their native places takes place from March to the second part of April. In autumn, birds migrate to warmer climes in September - November.
What is the voice of the golden plover?
Of course, the golden plover will not compete with the nightingale, but its song is full of a peculiar charm. The song of the male is called displaying. It rises high into the air and currents, evenly flapping its wings. The marriage song always consists of two couplets-parts. In the first part, the male emits separate disyllabic whistles. This is a beautiful and unhurried part, which is repeated many times with small stops. The second part of the current is more hasty, and the whistles in it sound without gaps.
If the bird is worried in the nest, then the whistle acquires an annoying sad intonation. In this case, the sounds are monosyllabic, repeated and monotonous. With the same monosyllabic whistles, golden plovers call to each other in a flock.
reproduction
The southern golden plover begins nesting at 1-2 years of age. Many one-year-old birds roam from place to place all summer. After choosing a place for the nest, the birds line it with a thick layer of plant material. The female lays 4 eggs, the interval between which can be 2-4 days. The height of the eggs is about 52 mm, their color is yellow-brown. In this case, brown spots are located closer to the blunt edge of the egg.
The family of plovers will sit on the masonry for 30 days. Male and female do this in turn. Then chicks appear, which from the first days begin to show independence. Small birds, the photo of which causes an explosion of tenderness, in fact, can immediately get their own food. They need parental supervision more to protect them from predators. I must say that golden plovers are brave birds! They selflessly lead predators away from the nest with chicks, pretending to be wounded. At the same time, they make sure that the distance between them and the predator remains small so that he does not lose interest and does not return to the nest.
Number and conservation measures
The number of the southern golden plover within Russia does not exceed 2 thousand pairs. During the periods of spring and autumn migration, about 500 individuals cross the territory of our country. The decline in the number of golden plover is due to shooting and the disappearance of nesting sites.
Since the range of the golden plover is limited, and the number is falling, the bird is listed in the Red Book of Russia.
Vida
Appearance and behavior. The sandpiper is medium in size, larger than the thrush. The head is large, rounded, with a short, strong beak, with a short neck and relatively short legs. The metatarsus is relatively short, but the fingers are longer than those of. The wings are of medium length, sharp and narrow, the tail is medium in size, with a straight cut. Body length 26–29 cm, wingspan 67–76 cm, weight 155–205 g.
Description. In an adult male, the top of the body from crown to tail is mostly black with small golden-yellow spots, which makes it look golden-mottled. The lower part of the body from the chin to the end of the belly is black. The motley, golden top and black bottom are separated by a wide white stripe running from the forehead to the undertail. The tail feathers are grayish-brown, the flight feathers are blackish-brown with white rods in the preapical part; axillary feathers are white.
Females are generally colored the same as males, but the underparts are not pure black, but black-brown, often with an admixture of individual white or yellowish feathers, especially on the chin, throat, neck, crop or chest. The individual character of coloring is preserved throughout life and does not depend on age. Some taxonomists distinguish 2 subspecies - northern golden plover (R. a. altifrons), inhabiting the forest-tundra and tundra, and southern (R. a. apricaria), living in the swamps of the forest zone of European Russia.
Birds of these subspecies differ slightly: in the southern golden plover, the white stripe running along the side of the body is not as clearly expressed as in the northern plover, or almost not expressed. The legs are four-toed, black or dark gray. There are small webs between the front fingers. The beak is black, the iris is dark brown. Adult birds in winter plumage are black-brown above with golden spots, as in summer. The forehead and throat are white with grayish-brown spots. On the sides of the neck and above the eye, the feathers are pale yellow with a brown center. The underside of the body to the back of the chest is grayish-brown, the belly is white. There are dark transverse stripes on the sides of the chest.
Young birds in juvenile plumage look like adults in summer feathers from above, but they have fewer golden spots. The underside of the body is off-white, in the region of the goiter and chest it is mottled with rounded golden and brown triangular spots, on the belly - transverse dark brown apical stripes forming a scaly pattern. Young birds in winter plumage, like adults in winter, but with a yellowish tinge of plumage on the chest and the remains of a transverse pattern on the sides.
The downy chick is black on top with bright golden endings of fluffs, the forehead and areas above the eyes are golden yellow, the sides of the head are pale yellow, a blackish stripe runs from the beak under the eyes. The throat is whitish, the crop is yellowish, the rest of the lower body is smoky. It differs from the thules by its golden yellow upperparts and white axillary feathers; rump and tail not lighter than back, stripe running along top of wing narrow and inconspicuous.
It differs from it by a wide white stripe along the side of the body, short legs relative to the body, and a denser, squat complexion. The key differences between the downy chicks of the golden plover and the chicks of the thules are the absence of a white necklace on the neck and a bright golden color in the color of the top.
Voice. The contact cry in the flock is a melodic monosyllabic whistle " FDI" or " pliy". The same cry, but more sonorous, is emitted by birds when they are disturbed near the nest or chicks. The song of the male during the current flight is a beautiful, slowly repeating flute whistle, sounding like “ tuu-tiiii". At the end of the current, usually when landing on the ground, the male emits a kind of trill “ thiurirr-thiurirr-thiurirr". This trill is often performed by the male when he accompanies the female.
Distribution, status. In European Russia, it is a nesting migratory species that inhabits the plain and mountain tundra, forest tundra and swamps in the taiga zone. In the taiga, it settles mainly on raised bogs, especially likes bogs with a developed ridge-hollow complex. In the rest of the territory of European Russia it may be encountered during the migration. Usually flies by mainland routes, stopping at harvested fields with stubble, pastures, low-grass meadows of various types, silt sedimentation ponds, lowered fish ponds, less often along the banks of reservoirs.
Winters mostly in inland regions, living both on plains and in mountainous areas. It is also found on mud sea coasts, but in small numbers. The wintering area stretches from the British Isles and the Netherlands south to North Africa (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia) and the countries of the Middle East.
Lifestyle. Arrives at nesting sites at the height of snowmelt, to the south of the range - at the end of April, to the tundra and forest-tundra - at the end of May. Upon arrival at the breeding grounds, the flocks break up, the males occupy individual territories and start displaying. The male usually swims at high altitude, flies, slowly flapping its wings, while flapping upwards, the wings almost touch (as in the Latin letter “ V”), after which they slowly lower to a horizontal position. During slow flight, males emit flute whistles, flying to another part of the territory or descending to the ground - trills.
When mating on the ground, the male and female often run side by side in the same direction, sometimes making sudden stops. It nests in various types of tundra, both dry and wet, on hilly peat bogs, always in places with good visibility. In the swamps of the forest zone, nests are usually arranged on ridges or mounds without trees or with rare oppressed pines, in drier conditions.
The nest lining consists of a mixture of pieces of white or yellow lichens, fragments of twigs of shrubs, dry leaves of willows, dwarf birch and lingonberries, fragments of blades of grass. varies from bluish or greenish to ocher-brown, more often it is pale yellowish. The spots are usually large, thick chocolate-brown or black-brown in color, deeper spots are grayish or violet-gray. Superficial spots are concentrated at the blunt end of the egg.
The male and female incubate in turn for 27–29 days. They are careful at the nest, in case of danger they leave in advance, run away or fly away, then run in the distance, shouting at the source of danger. Some birds sit very tightly and sometimes allow a person to take a few steps. In this case, having flown off the nest, they are intensively withdrawn, depicting a wounded bird. Birds of prey are not driven away from the nest.
The chicks hatch within 1–2 days, often the first chicks leave with one of the parents not far from the nest, and after the last chicks hatch, the brood unites. Families stay in nesting habitats, but in wetter areas. The young stay with the adults for 5 weeks. Juveniles migrate south on average later than adults. Spring migration usually occurs from late April to mid-May. Autumn migration is more extended, peaking at the end of August or beginning of September, although the first migrants (adult birds) can be encountered in significant numbers from mid-July, especially in the northern parts of European Russia.
Features of movement on the ground and methods of collecting food, like in tules (alternating runs and stops with inspection of the soil surface). On nesting sites it collects land insects and their larvae (beetles, centipede mosquitoes, butterflies), freshwater mollusks. During migration and wintering, it feeds mainly on beetles in the fields, and on seashores - on mollusks. In autumn, berries (blueberries, lingonberries) play a significant role in nutrition.
golden plover ( Pluvialis apricaria)
They have different habitats and ways of surviving, but they have one thing in common: a small to medium body size and rather long legs, neck and wings. This group also includes plover family.
Among them are such varieties as:
- golden plovers;
- brown-winged plovers;
- tules.
Despite the general species similarity in behavior and appearance, these also have some differences. Thus, speaking about the habits of plovers, as a rule, it should be clarified which particular subspecies is in question.
Features and habitat of the plover
Representatives of the plover family prefer to live in the cold spots of the world. Their habitat range extends throughout the north of Russia, Canada and Alaska, and in some places reaches the Arctic Circle.
You can also see such a bird in the Scandinavian countries and in northern Germany. Previously, they were found in Central Europe in greater numbers, but now you can only meet her there by chance.
Like a bird desert, plover chooses flat large spaces where it can move by running and short flights. This is how she behaves when she does not need to make winter trips to warmer climes.
In winter, these birds make long flights and then prefer to wait out the coldest months in England, Argentina, as well as on the coasts and meadows belonging to the territories of Western Europe.
Sometimes they linger even in the Caucasus and Central America. Traditionally, different types of plovers prefer different directions of flight. For example, the brown-winged species prefers to settle in Argentina, but the golden plover is quite satisfied with wintering in relatively cold England.
Plover lives in the tundra and marshy meadows and fields, prefers the banks of water bodies. Sometimes plovers choose for life even lands flooded with water during a flood. This allows them to find food.
The nature and lifestyle of the plover
The golden plover is a medium-sized representative of the shorebird family. It has a large beak capable of splitting hard objects, such as medium-sized shells.
The color of her feathers is gray-brown, but in spring the males have a much brighter color. This bird spends its entire life in cold, and often swampy areas, where, like most waders, it runs very fast, periodically snatching prey with its beak.
For the winter, the plover makes flights, as a rule, remaining within Northern Europe. Often she chooses England for wintering. The speed of the golden plover in flight reaches 50 km/h.
The brown-winged plover outwardly, oddly enough, is much brighter than the golden one. In her plumage there are the most colorful combinations. She has a white stripe across her back, and her tail does have the same golden hue.
She largely leads the same lifestyle as her sister, but she makes much longer flights. At the same time, on the way, the brown-winged plover does not look for food or food, and practically does not stop until it reaches the coast of South America.
Tules is another species of shorebird, which is often isolated due to its large size compared to other species of these birds. However, he is close relative of the plover common and belongs to the same family.
It has a rather bright white-brown or black-and-white color and prefers food from aquatic inhabitants, therefore it lives much closer to water bodies than other subspecies. However, he also obtains food either by quick throws while running, or by short dives.
Nutrition
golden plover It eats a wide variety of insects, from dragonflies to beetles. She does not disdain snails, but at the same time - all kinds of larvae, cocoons and eggs. When the golden plover has to migrate during the cold of winter, it settles on the English coasts and feeds on crustaceans.
Sometimes the golden plover also pecks at the seeds of plants, their berries and green shoots. In general, its diet of all species of shorebirds can be considered the most diverse. brown-winged plover she also prefers to eat insects, snails and crustaceans, but she rarely eats parts of plants.
Moreover, as a rule, in her diet, when she still pays attention to plants, the main place is occupied by berries. She is interested in shoots and seeds much less than golden.
Tules, in turn, pays more attention to snails, mollusks and invertebrates. He also eats plants to a lesser extent than golden plover, usually by eating only their seeds or berries.
Reproduction and lifespan of plover
Plover - a bird, equipping its nests in small pits on the ground in the middle of an open space, and this applies to all representatives of the species. Nests are lined with down, but not too thick. As a rule, both parents participate in incubation of eggs, one of which, if necessary, stays with the nest, and the other gets food and takes the predators aside.
However, often only the female remains on the nest, and the male watches what is happening around from somewhere above. This allows the plovers to notice the danger in time and react appropriately.
Golden plover and thules usually have four eggs in the nest, all brownish in color, which can also be pinkish or golden, and can range to almost black, often with dark spots in the lower part, near the blunt end.
They do not lay eggs immediately, but within two days, sometimes with rather noticeable interruptions. The brown-winged plover lays only two or three eggs, and they are all white with black spots.
The average period of incubation of eggs in different species of plovers is from 23 to 30 days, after which the chicks hatch fully capable of self-feeding, although covered with soft fluff. After a period of a month to one and a half, they finally mature and leave the nest. The development cycle lasts the longest in the golden plover, and it is the shortest in the brown-winged plover.
Plover chick
Like any sandpiper, plover has a rather limited lifespan. Until now, the maximum officially recorded life span of the golden plover is only twelve years. The brown-winged plover reaches fourteen, and sometimes even sixteen years.
Tules can be called a real long-liver among representatives of the species - he lives up to eighteen years. However, even this period is considered long among waders. Their average life expectancy is usually only four to ten years.
The golden plover is a typical representative of its family. This is a rather large, densely folded sandpiper with short legs and a strong short beak.
The upper part of the plumage of the bird is dark, with frequent golden streaks, the bottom is black; between the lower and upper parts is a bright white stripe. The underside of the wing and axillary feathers are white. This is what males look like in breeding attire, females are a little dimmer. Winter clothing of birds is less bright, without a black "apron" on the abdomen. Juveniles are similar in color to females.
FUNNY NAMES
The plover is a typical northern tundra bird, and is found from as far as Central Siberia. The main places of its summer residence and nesting are various types of tundra, from the south of the Arctic zone to the moss swamps of the middle zone. It is also found in the mountain tundra, upland meadows and wastelands.
Shrubs, tall grass and other thickets of plover are avoided, preferring open, even, with a good view of the place. On migration, shorebirds stay in fields, meadows and swamps, often feed in spring on sprouted winter crops, for which they were called before " sevka "or, in the Ukrainian manner," sivkami ". The funny appearance of the bird is reflected in other folk names: cockerel , seed , field grouse .
TREATMENT ON GROUND AND IN THE AIR
Golden plovers arrive at nesting sites in May, and in the far north - in June, when the snow melts in the tundra. In Iceland, where the plover is common, it, like the rook in the middle lane, is called the herald of spring. Even on the migration in flocks of sandpipers, group display begins: males show off in front of females, bowing and showing a bright black belly. Couples gradually fight off the pack and occupy their own site, where courtship continues, only in the air. The male performs ritual flights around the female; it can hover, flutter its wings, or even hover briefly, like a very large hummingbird! Having fallen to the ground, the newlyweds run side by side, sometimes for quite a long time.
PARADISE IN THE HUT
Dancing dancing, but it's time to think about the children. Like most waders, shorebirds need marshes to nest. The nest of these birds is a simple hole in the ground, carelessly lined with dry blades of grass. Here the female lays four olive or yellowish eggs with dense dark speckles. Both parents incubate them, regularly replacing each other. At the same time, they behave very carefully: if someone approaches the nest, they quietly leave it and give a voice only in the distance.
FOLLOW THE PARENTS
After about a month, puffballs appear. Like all birds with a brood type of development, plover chicks are sighted, hear perfectly, are covered with thick warm fluff and are quite capable of running after their parents a few hours after hatching. The baby, like mom and dad, feeds mainly on insects - small beetles, caterpillars, worms and various larvae (by the way, she loves caterpillars of the winter scoop - the worst pest of plants). At the end of summer and autumn, berries also appear on the menu. At first, the parents lead the brood behind them, and at the slightest danger they selflessly try to take the enemy away from the nest (plotters are very caring parents). Having become older, the chicks already feed quite independently under the supervision of adults, but for about a month the alarming whistle of the parents makes the children instantly hide.
TIME TO FLY!
At the age of 10-14 days, young plovers are already trying wings, and after 40-45 days they fly quite confidently. At this time, families begin to stray into larger flocks and roam - first within the nesting area, and then further, moving south. Pairs that are unlucky with nesting set off earlier, as early as July. The main span of tundra sandals takes place in September. Plovers unite in small flocks of 20-40 birds. Most often they fly at night, and during the day they stop in the fields, swamps and burnt areas to feed and rest. In the most "delicious" places, quite large flocks sometimes gather, up to several hundred, or even thousands of individuals. It is interesting that the birds, which are rather cautious in summer, behave much more trustingly on the migration and sometimes let a person in about ten meters.
FROM ENGLAND TO ALGERIA
Wintering places are varied: golden plovers can be found in and in the countries of the Mediterranean, and North Africa, and the Middle East. At this time, they keep, of course, not in swamps (there are no swamps in Africa), but in fields, meadows and pastures. Interestingly, they were met in flocks along with lapwings almost in the desert! Unlike their closest relatives, golden plovers rarely feed on the muddy coasts of the seas in winter, preferring drier places.
Two subspecies of golden plover are known - northern and southern. Northern - quite common, and sometimes numerous. Southern, nesting in the Pskov, Tver, Novgorod regions, is very rare and is listed in many regional Red Books.
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF
Class: birds.
Order: Charadriiformes.
Family: plovers.
Genus: plovers.
Species: golden plover.
Latin name: Pluvialis apricaria.
Size: body length - 25-30 cm, wingspan - 67-76 cm.
Weight: 150-220 g.
Colour: yellow with black spots.
Life span of golden plover: up to 12 years.
Plover - detachment Charadriiformes, family Plovers
Asian brown-winged plover (Pluvialis fulva). Habitat - Asia. Wingspan 70 cm Weight 190 g
Plovers are widely represented almost all over the world, they live in Australia, Asia, America, Africa and Europe.
Most of them lead a migratory lifestyle, overcoming huge distances from nesting places to wintering places. Birds are a kind of champions among birds: it is known that brown-winged plovers make a “non-stop” flight over the sea from the Aleutian to Hawaiian Islands (over 3000 kilometers) in 36 hours.
All this time the birds do not feed and do not rest. But this is not the end of their journey: after a little rest, the plovers again set off on a flight of at least 3,000 kilometers to the pampas of South America. Birds nest in the wet hummocky tundra, moss swamps. The female lays 3 to 5 eggs in a shallow hole sparsely lined with soft vegetation. The chicks that were born, having dried out, leave the nest and feed on their own from the very first days of existence.
golden plover
The sandpiper is slightly larger than the thrush. Males of golden plovers during the mating season have a very colorful appearance. Their belly is black; the black throat is bordered by a white stripe stretching from the forehead to the sides of the undertail. The top of the body is dotted with black and yellow streaks, borders and specks. Their wingspan is 67-76 cm. Typical habitats are tundra, mountain meadows, marshy wastelands. Outside of Russia, the species can be found on the territory from Iceland to the UK. Previously, they flew to the south of Europe in winter, but now they are rare in those areas. Golden plovers form stable pairs, each with its own territory. In Iceland, the arrival of golden plovers is a sign of the coming spring.
In Russia, the range of the species extends eastward to the basin of the Khatanga River; the northern limit of distribution reaches the 70th and 72nd parallels. Nests are arranged in open space; there are 4 eggs in a clutch, they are yellow-brown, with a dark brown pattern.
white plover
White Plover (Chionis alba). Habitat - Antarctica. Wingspan 80 cm Weight 780 g
These birds are inhabitants of the subarctic and arctic latitudes. Because of the conspicuous beaks with "lids", the explorers of the North called the white plovers "case-beaks". A curious feature of these birds is that although plovers are typical coastal birds, very reluctant to sink into the water, they love to accompany ships, sometimes flying several hundred kilometers deep into the sea.
White plovers are not at all afraid of a person, perhaps because they meet him extremely rarely. They inhabit coastal cliffs, arrange dwellings in their crevices and depressions, willingly use the burrows of petrels. They feed on animal food, do not disdain carrion, and often destroy nests. The female white plover lays 2-3 eggs at intervals of several days. The bird begins incubation immediately after laying the first one, and the first hatched chick survives.
crayfish plover
Crayfish (Dramas ardeola). Habitat - Asia, Africa. Length 40 cm Weight 330 g
The crayfish is the only species in this feathered family. Birds live along the shores of the tropical seas of Asia and Africa, settle in large colonies. Crayfish plovers find food either on the edge of the surf or in shallow water. They feed mainly on mollusks and crustaceans, including crabs, hence their name. Having caught the prey, the bird pecks at the shell of a shell or crab with a short but very strong beak and feasts on the contents.
Crayfish plovers, perhaps the only representatives of the entire order, do not “lead” chicks, but feed them in nests. Nests are long burrows (sometimes more than 2 meters long), which birds dig in sand dunes with their beaks. Burrows end with nesting chambers, in which females lay only 1 large white egg. The chick stays in the nest until it fledges.