Little Ringed Plover
Thinornis dubius
金眶鸻
Introduction
Small plover native to the Old World. Has brown upperparts, a black neckband, and a black mask around the eye with a distinctive yellow eyering. The forehead, belly, and remaining breast are white. Migratory species that breeds in open gravel areas near freshwater, including gravel pits, islands, and river edges across the Palearctic including northwestern Africa. Nests on the ground on stones with little or no plant growth. Diet consists primarily of insects and worms, which it forages for in muddy areas by sight.
Description
Adult has grey-brown back and wings, white belly, and a white breast with a single black neckband. The head features a brown cap, white forehead, and a black mask around the eyes with white above it. Has a short dark bill, flesh-coloured legs, and all toes are webbed.
Identification
Similar to the larger common ringed plover but distinguished by head pattern, leg colour (flesh-coloured versus orange-yellow in common ringed plover), and the presence of a clear yellow eye-ring, which the common ringed plover lacks.
Distribution & Habitat
Breeds across the Palearctic from Scandinavia southward to northern Africa, eastward across Russia to the Sea of Okhotsk and Ussuriland, and further eastward through the Middle East to Japan and Taiwan. Three subspecies are recognized: T. d. curonicus (Scandinavia to Japan and Taiwan, wintering to Africa and southern Asia), T. d. jerdoni (India to southeastern Asia), and T. d. dubius (Philippines to New Guinea and Bismarck Archipelago). Migratory, wintering in Africa and southern Asia.
Behavior & Ecology
Forages on muddy areas, locating prey by sight. Diet consists mainly of insects and worms. Both males and females share incubation duties of the eggs.
Conservation
Listed as Least Concern by the IUCN. The species is protected under the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA).
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
Taxonomy
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Charadriidae
- Genus
- Thinornis
- eBird Code
- lirplo
Subspecies (3)
-
Thinornis dubius curonicus
breeds Palearctic from Scandinavia southward to northern Africa, eastward across Russia to Sea of Okhotsk and Ussuriland, southward through Middle East and eastward to Japan and Taiwan; winters to Africa and southern Asia
-
Thinornis dubius dubius
Philippines to New Guinea and Bismarck Archipelago
-
Thinornis dubius jerdoni
India to southeastern Asia
Data Sources
Species description from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Bird images and sounds sourced from GBIF, contributed by citizen scientists worldwide under Creative Commons licenses.
Taxonomy data from AviList 2025.