BIRDS of THE WORLD - An Online Bird Book
SHOREBIRDS
Large Plovers
Order Charadriiformes Family Charadriidae
SHOREBIRDS
Most Shorebirds walk along shores probing for food with their thin sensitive bills. Bill length varies considerably so differing species can work the same shore and obtain different
food supplies. Shorebirds include sandpipers, godwits, stilts, oystercatchers, plovers, and many more. Shorebirds belong to the Charadriiformes order which also includes the Gulls
and Allies.
Note: the term Shorebirds is used in the Americas; elsewhere "waders" is used. We will reserve "waders" for herons and allies.
Some Charadriiformes families:
Burhinidae: thick-knees; Charadriidae: small plovers, lapwings; Glareolidae: courses, pratincoles; Haematopodidae: oystercatchers
Jacanidae: jacanas; Recurvirostridae: avocets, stilts; Scolopacidae: small bill sandpipers, large bill sandpipers.
Note: the term Shorebirds is used in the Americas; elsewhere "waders" is used. We will reserve "waders" for herons and allies.
Some Charadriiformes families:
Burhinidae: thick-knees; Charadriidae: small plovers, lapwings; Glareolidae: courses, pratincoles; Haematopodidae: oystercatchers
Jacanidae: jacanas; Recurvirostridae: avocets, stilts; Scolopacidae: small bill sandpipers, large bill sandpipers.
Large Plovers
Order Charadriiformes Family Charadriidae
The family Charadriidae contain the plovers, dotterels and lapwings. The term plover is often used to encompass all family members. The small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short, thick necks and long, usually pointed, wings. They hunt by sight, rather than by feel as longer-billed waders do. The largest plovers are the members of genus Vanellus and they are called lapwings.
Genus Vanellus
Lapwings have long legs and usually assume an upright postision. Most have wattles (red, yellow, or orange) about the face and most have distinctive markings about the face and breast.
Lapwing,_African Wattled also Senegal Wattled Plover Vanellus senegallus Found: Africa
The African Wattled Lapwing has brown back and wings; pale breast and upper belly; black lower belly; black streaked neck; black crown. ; white forehead; yellow face wattles; yellow black tipped bill.
Similar to: Yellow-wattled Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. Yellow-wattled Lapwing has white belly; African Wattled Lapwing has black lower belly.
Image by: 1) Bill Hingham 2, 3) Arno Meintjes 4) Dick Daniels - Keekorok Lodge in the Masai Mara, KenyaSimilar to: Yellow-wattled Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. Yellow-wattled Lapwing has white belly; African Wattled Lapwing has black lower belly.
Lapwing,_Andean Vanellus resplendens Found: South America
The Andean Lapwing has brown back with greenish sheen; dark brown wings; pale gray head and breast; white belly; pink legs.
Similar to: Black-winged Lapwing. Their ranges do not overlap. The Black-winged Lapwing has a black lower breast; the Andean Lawiing has a pale gray breast.
Image by: 1) S. M. Jayanth 2) Dick Daniels - Andes of Peru 3, 4) Nick Athanas- PeruSimilar to: Black-winged Lapwing. Their ranges do not overlap. The Black-winged Lapwing has a black lower breast; the Andean Lawiing has a pale gray breast.
Lapwing,_Banded Vanellus tricolor Found: Australia
The Banded Lapwing has a brown back and wings; black cap; white eye stripe, throat and bib, belly; black breast band that extends upward to head; yellow eyes, eye-ring; red legs.
Similar to: Masked Lapwing. The Masked Lapwing has yellow wattles on its head; Banded Lapwing does not.
Image by: 1) JJ_Harrison 2) djpmapleferryman 3) Helenabella on Rottnest Island, AU 4) Jim BendonSimilar to: Masked Lapwing. The Masked Lapwing has yellow wattles on its head; Banded Lapwing does not.
Lapwing,_Black-headed Vanellus tectus Found: central Africa
The Black-headed Lapwing has a black head with white forehead and lower face; black center strip on underparts.
Image by: 1, 2) Nik_Borrow - Uganda 3) Charles_J_Sharp - Senegal 4) Brendan_Ryan.jpg){kind=link}
Lapwing,_Blacksmith also Blacksmith Plover Vanellus armatus Found: Africa
The Blacksmith Lapwing has black and gray (pied) back, wings; white crown, rear neck collar; black head band, face, throat, breast, bill; red eyes.
Image by: 1, 2) Dick Daniels - South Africa 3) Celso_Flores - South Africa 4) Cristiano Crolle - 5) Dick - Tanzania 
Lapwing,_Black-winged also Greater Black-winged Plover Vanellus melanopterus Found: Africa
The Black-winged Lapwingh has brown back, wings; gray head, neck, upper breast; black lower breast; white forehead, belly; dull pink legs.
Similar to: Andean Lapwing. Their ranges do not overlap. The Black-winged Lapwing has a black lower breast; the Andean Lawiing has a pale gray breast.
Similar to: Senegal Lapwing. Senegal Lapwing has distinct white forehead and blackish legs; Black-winged Lapwing has difuse white forehead and reddish legs.
Image by: 1) Allan_Hopkins 2) Dave Curtis 3) Francesco_Veronesi - KenyaSimilar to: Andean Lapwing. Their ranges do not overlap. The Black-winged Lapwing has a black lower breast; the Andean Lawiing has a pale gray breast.
Similar to: Senegal Lapwing. Senegal Lapwing has distinct white forehead and blackish legs; Black-winged Lapwing has difuse white forehead and reddish legs.
Lapwing,_Brown-chested Vanellus superciliosus Found: Africa
The Brown-chested Lapwing has black crown; yellow wattle on forehead, eye-ring; chesnut breast-band; white belly.
Image by: 1) Nik_Borrow - Uganda 2) Francesco_Veronesi - Uganda 3) Lip_kee - Tanzania
1) Nonbreeding
Lapwing,_Crowned also Crowned Plover Vanellus coronatus Found: Africa
The Crowned Lapwing has brown upperparts, breast; black cap surrounded by white ring, enclosed by black ring; pink bill tipped with pink; yellow eyes; red legs.
Similar to: Pied Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap.
Image by: 1, 2) Dick Daniels - Johannesburg, South Africa 3, 4) Dick - Tanzania 5) Dick - Nairobi National Park, Kenya 6) Derek_Keats - South AfricaSimilar to: Pied Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap.
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Lapwing,_Gray-headed Vanellus cinereus Found: Asia
The Gray-headed Lapwing has brown back; gray head, neck; black breast-band, tail; white belly, rump
Image by: 1) Alpsdake - Japan 2) Hyashi Haka 3) Sai_Adikarla 4) nkenji 5) Digicacy - Japan 
Lapwing,_Long-toed also Long-toed Plover Vanellus crassirostris Found: Africa
Similar to: Spur-winged Lapwing. The Spur-winged Lapwing has a black belly; the Long-toed Lapwing has a white belly.
Image by: 1) Nathan Rupert - San Diego Zoo 2) Dick Daniels - San Diego Zoo 3) Nik_Borrow - Kenya 4) David_Cook - Uganda 5) Artur 6) Lip Kee - Botswana 
Lapwing,_Masked also Crowned Plover Vanellus miles Found: Australia
The Masked Lapwing has brown upperparts; white underparts; yellow face wattle extends behind eyes; black crown.
Similar to: Banded Lapwing. The Masked Lapwing has yellow wattles on its head; Banded Lapwing does not.
Similar to: White-headed Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. Masked Lapwing has black crown; White-headed Lapwing has white crown.
Image by: 1, 2, 3) Dick Daniels - Sylvan Heights 4) Sandy Cole - Sylvan Heights
5, 6, 7, 8)Dick Daniels - AustraliaSimilar to: Banded Lapwing. The Masked Lapwing has yellow wattles on its head; Banded Lapwing does not.
Similar to: White-headed Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. Masked Lapwing has black crown; White-headed Lapwing has white crown.
1 - 5) Race miles 6 - 9) Race novaehollendae
Lapwing,_Northern Vanellus vanellus Found: North America (vagrant), Europe, Asia, Africa
The Northern Lapwing has a green back; black crest, cap, forehead, fore-neck, breast; white belly.
Similar to: Southern Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. The Southern Lapwing has a plainer face.
Image by: 1) Bob Hall 2) Gidzy 3) Niklas Nilsson 4) Silvain de Munck - Netherlands 5) sjahanmi - United Arab Emirates 6) Eddie Van 3000 7) Cristiano Crolle - near Novara, ItalySimilar to: Southern Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. The Southern Lapwing has a plainer face.
Lapwing,_Pied Vanellus cayanus Found: South America
The Pied Lapwing has brown back; grayish-brown crown; black face, forehead, breast-band, V on mantle, bill; white fore-neck, lower-breast, belly; red legs.
Similar to: Crowned Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap.
Image by:
1) Alastair Rae - Brazil 2) Felix_Uribe 2) Amy McAndrews - Brazil 3) David Schenfeld - Brazil 4) Nick Athanas- BrazilSimilar to: Crowned Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap.
Lapwing,_Red-wattled Vanellus indicus Found: Asia, Africa
The Red-wattled Lapwing has light brown back, wings; black head, neck, breast; white border of black bib; red wattle in front of each eye; black tipped red bill; yellow legs.
Similar to: Spur-winged Lapwing. The ranges do not overlap. The Spur-winged Lapwing has a black belly; the Red-wattled Lapwing has a white belly.
Image by: 1) Lip Kee - Sri Lanka 2) Ainus 3) JM
Garg Similar to: Spur-winged Lapwing. The ranges do not overlap. The Spur-winged Lapwing has a black belly; the Red-wattled Lapwing has a white belly.
Lapwing,_River Vanellus duvaucelii Found: southeast Asia, India
The River Lapwing has brown back; black head, central throat, belly patch, tail; grayish-white neck side, nape; white belly, rump.
Image by: 1) Soumyadeep Chatterjee - India 2) Tarique_Sani 3) Mike_Prince 4) Tarique Sani - India
Lapwing,_Senegal Vanellus lugubris Found: Africa
The Senegal Lapwing has brown back; white forehead, belly; blackish legs, upper-breast.
Similar to: Black-winged Lapwing. Senegal Lapwing has distinct white forehead and blackish legs; Black-winged Lapwing has difuse white forehead and reddish legs.
Image by: 1) Sumeet Moghe - Kenya 2) Bill Highman - Mozambique 3) Greg_MilesSimilar to: Black-winged Lapwing. Senegal Lapwing has distinct white forehead and blackish legs; Black-winged Lapwing has difuse white forehead and reddish legs.
Lapwing,_Sociable Vanellus gregarius Found: Asia, Africa
The breeding Sociable Lapwing has gray back, breast; dark belly; white undertail; black crown, eye-stripe; white above and below the eye-stripe. Nonbreeding browner back, breast; white belly.
Image by: 1) Didier Descouens 2) Balaji Venkatesh - India 3) cks3976 - India 4) Rob LLewellyn - Kazakhstan
Lapwing,_Southern Vanellus Chilensis Found: Central America (vagrant), South America
The Southern Lapwing has brownish-gray upperparts; gray head, crest; black forehead, throat, breast; white belly; pink eye-ring, legs; pink bill with black tip.
Similar to: Northern Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. The Southern Lapwing has a plainer face.
Image by: 1, 2) Cláudio Timm - Brazil 3) Dario
Sanches - Brazil 4) New
Jersy Birds 4) dFaulder at
Puerto Chacabuco, Chile 5) Dick Daniels - Boquette, Panama 6) Dick - Chile 7) Dick - Sylvan Heights 8) Cristiano Crolle - ArgentinaSimilar to: Northern Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. The Southern Lapwing has a plainer face.
1) Juvenile
Lapwing,_Spot-breasted Vanellus melanocephalus Found: Ethiopia
The Spot-breasted Lapwing brownish-gray upperparts; black crown; white eye-line, belly; spotted upper-breast.
Image by: 1) Kris Maes 2, 3) Nik_Borrow
Lapwing,_Spur-winged also Spur-winged Plover Vanellus spinosus Found: Europe, Africa
The Spur-winged Lapwing has light brown back and wings; black crown, breast, bill, tail, legs; black fore-neck stripe, rest of neck white.
Similar to: Red-wattled Lapwing. The ranges do not overlap. The Spur-winged Lapwing has a black belly; the Red-wattled Lapwing has a white belly.
Image by: 1) Anders Lanzen 2) Nik_Borrow - Senegal 3) Dick Daniels - Sylvan Heights 4) Bernard_DupontSimilar to: Red-wattled Lapwing. The ranges do not overlap. The Spur-winged Lapwing has a black belly; the Red-wattled Lapwing has a white belly.
Lapwing,_White-headed also White-crowned Plover Vanellus albiceps Found: Africa
The White-headed Lapwing has brown back; black wings; white underparts; gray head with white crown and forehead;yellow face wattles.
Similar to: Masked Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. Masked Lapwing has black crown; White-headed Lapwing has white crown.
Image by: 1) Derek_Ramsey 2) Nik_Borrow - Senegal 3, 4) Dick Daniels - San Diego Zoo 5) Dick Daniels - National AviarySimilar to: Masked Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. Masked Lapwing has black crown; White-headed Lapwing has white crown.
Lapwing,_White-tailed Vanellus leucurus Found: Asia, Africa
The White-tailed Lapwing has a brown back, fore-neck; brown, white, and black wings; white belly.
Image by: 1) Charles_J_Sharp Marcel Holyoak - Israel 2) Kishore Bhargava - India 3) Sergey Yeliseev - Armenia.jpg){kind=link}
Lapwing,_Yellow-wattled Vanellus malabaricus Found: India
The Yellow-wattled Lapwing has pale brown upperparts, neck, breast; white belly; black crown; yellow face wattles, eye-rings, legs.
Similar to: African Wattled Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. Yellow-wattled Lapwing has white belly; African Wattled Lapwing has black lower belly.
Image by: 1) Gaurika_Wijeratne - Sri Lanka 2) Werner Witte - Sri Lanka 3) S. M. Jayanth 4) Charles_J_Sharp - IndiaSimilar to: African Wattled Lapwing. Ranges do not overlap. Yellow-wattled Lapwing has white belly; African Wattled Lapwing has black lower belly.
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