large bill; single breast band (California, USA; 2010-04-16)


Wilson's Plover
Charadrius wilsonia

Native Range: North America and Latin America

Notes: larger than other "belted" plovers such as the Snowy Plover and Semipalmated Plover, but like them shows a single breast band; heavy bill is another good field mark; likes sandy beaches and dry mud flats where it feeds on small crabs; no sexual dimorphism.

plain brown-gray back; dul-colored legs (California, USA; 2010-04-16)
eating a fiddler crab (California, USA; 2010-04-16)

hunkering down; pale reddish on back of face (California, USA; 2010-04-16)
running after a crab on a mudflat (California, USA; 2010-04-16)

posing for a portrait; note heavy bill (California, USA; 2010-04-16)