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  • Grey plover

Grey plover

Grey plover (summer plumage)
Grey plover (summer plumage)
Grey plover (winter plumage)
Grey plover (winter plumage)
Grey plover (juvenile)
Grey plover (juvenile)
  • Scientific name: Pluvialis squatarola
  • Bird family: Plovers
  • UK conservation status: Amber
  • Protected by The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981

Audio

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Marco Dragonetti, Xeno-canto

Key information

In summer it has silver and black spotted upperparts, a black face, neck and belly. In winter, it loses the black feathers and takes on a browny-grey look. In both plumages, the rump is white and in flight in winter it shows distinctive black 'armpits'. Like most plovers it stands very upright and tends to run and then suddenly stop to feed. It is generally seen in small numbers, although flocks can form when there is a high tide.

What they eat:

Shellfish and worms.

Measurements:

Length:
28cm
Wingspan:
77cm
Weight:
240g

Population:

UK wintering:
43,000 birds
UK passage:
70,000 birds in spring

Identifying features:

This bird species has different identifying features depending on sex/age/season.

Grey plover (summer plumage)

Grey plover, summer plumage
Feather colour: Black Brown Grey White
Beak: Black Medium length Medium thickness
Natural habitats: Grassland Marine and intertidal Wetland

Grey plover (winter plumage)

Grey plover, winter plumage
Feather colour: Black Brown Cream/buff Grey White
Beak: Black Medium length Medium thickness
Natural habitats: Grassland Marine and intertidal Wetland

Similar birds:

  • Golden plover, summer plumage
    Golden plover

Where and when to see them

Grey plovers are found only along coasts, preferring large muddy and sandy estuaries. Largest numbers are found on the Wash, Ribble, Thames, Blackwater, Medway, Dee and Humber estuaries and Chichester and Langstone Harbours.

* This map is intended as a guide. It shows general distribution rather than detailed, localised populations.
  • Resident
  • Passage
  • Summer
  • Winter
Grey plover distribution map

A few grey plovers stay through the summer and the first migrant adults arrive in the UK in July and the young in August and September. Peak numbers are seen between November and March and birds leave in April and May.

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