Kittlitz's Plover Anarhynchus pecuarius Scientific name definitions

12–14 cm; 19–54 g (1 Dunning, J. B., Jr. (2008). CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses. Second edition. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA. Close , 2 Zefania, S., Emilienne, R., Faria, P.J., Bruford, M.W., Long, P.R. and Székely, T. (2010). Cryptic sexual size dimorphism in Malagasy plovers Charadrius spp. Ostrich. 81(3): 173–178. Close , 3 Meissner, W., Remisiewicz, M. and Pilacka, L. (2011). Investigations of sexual dimorphism in live Kittlitz’s Plover Charadrius pecuarius from inland South Africa. Ostrich. 82(2): 135–139. Close ); wingspan 40–44 cm. The Kittlitz's Plover has a black  eyestripe , white inlinemedia , and dark brown upperparts with sandy-rufous fringes. The breast and belly are sandy rufous. This species resembles Madagascar Plover (<em>Anarhynchus thoracicus</em>) , but lacks the breast band, and has slightly longer legs. It's very similar to allopatric St. Helena Plover (Anarhynchus sanctaehelenae), but is smaller, has shorter legs, and more brightly colored underparts. The female has slightly paler underparts, a narrower black forecrown, and is on average heavier, at least in some populations (3 Meissner, W., Remisiewicz, M. and Pilacka, L. (2011). Investigations of sexual dimorphism in live Kittlitz’s Plover Charadrius pecuarius from inland South Africa. Ostrich. 82(2): 135–139. Close ). A non-breeding adult has variable depths of color: the black on the head may be browner, and white parts of the head may turn sandy brownish. Juveniles resemble non-breeding adults, but lack black head lines, broader fringes on upperpart feathers, and brownish lateral breast patches. Madagascan birds sometimes have an orange-buff wash to the supercilium.

This species is probably most closely related to Madagascar Plover (Anarhynchus thoracicus) and St. Helena Plover (Anarhynchus sanctaehelenae); often considered conspecific with latter. Various subspecies have been proposed: allenbyi (from Egypt), isabellinus (Egypt to DRCongo, Kenya) and tephricolor (southwestern Africa and northern Botswana). However, the variation is slight and mainly clinal, with overlapping characters, and reported sample sizes are small. This species is monotypic.

Northeastern Egypt; sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal to Sudan and South Africa; Madagascar.

The Kittlitz's Plover's habitat spans from coast to uplands; primarily inland in varied flat, open habitats with poor soil, usually close to water ; often near margins of lakes, reservoirs, small (sometimes temporary) pools or flooded ground; also saltpans, tidal mudflats and lagoons, saltmarshes, sandbanks, and along sandy riverbeds. This species avoids tall, dense closed vegetation and steep or broken terrain. It is found along the coast, roosts at high water with other small Charadrius plovers. The Kittlitz's Ploverhas been recorded up to 1400 m in Madagascar (mainly below 950 m) (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), up to 1500 m in Zambia (5 Dowsett, R. J., D. R. Aspinwall, and F. Dowsett-Lemaire (2008). The Birds of Zambia. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ), and 2730 m in Ethiopia (6 Ash, J. S., and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: An Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

The Kittlitz's Plover is generally resident, but locally makes seasonal movements, possibly related to seasonal rainfall and flooding. The patterns are poorly understood. In Southern Africa, it has been suggested that there is an essentially migratory population in higher rainfall areas (south at least to Zimbabwe) overlapped in certain seasons by a highly nomadic population (especially in Botswana to Northern Cape) from areas of erratic, lower rainfall (7 Tree, A.J. (2001). Kittlitz’s Plover as an intra-African migrant. Honeyguide. 47(1): 10–16. Close ). Evidence of two populations, one resident, the other itinerant, also comes from northwestern South Africa (8 Lipshutz, S., Remisiewicz, M., Underhill, L.G. and Avni, J. (2011). Seasonal fluctuations in population size and habitat segregation of Kittlitz’s Plover Charadrius pecuarius at Barberspan Bird Sanctuary, North West province, South Africa. Ostrich. 82(3): 207–215. Close ). The Kittlitz's Plover occasionally occurs in large numbers on shores of Lake Victoria, is a summer visitor to Botswana, and a dry-season visitor to Sierra Leone (Dec–Apr), Zambia, and Zimbabwe (Apr–Dec). Presumably, birds from Zimbabwe fly to Botswana, Namibia and Cape Province to join sedentary coastal populations. In Madagascar, there is some indication of short-range movements in response to rainfall (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Flocks of 100–200 birds have been reported during local movements. There have been vagrant or rare visitors north to Bahrain (9 Hirschfeld, E. (1992). Birds new to Bahrain 1989–92. Sandgrouse 14(2):112–116. Close ), Cyprus (10 Flint, P.R., Stewart, P.F. and Kirwan, G.M. (1997). A review of claimed records of Lesser Sand Plover Charadrius mongolus from Cyprus and Turkey. Sandgrouse. 19(2): 133–139. Close ), Greece (11 Vlachos, C. (2006). The first Kittlitz’s Plover for Greece. Birding World. 19(1): 18. Close ), Israel, Morocco (12 Thévenot, M., R. Vernon, and P. Bergier (2003). The Birds of Morocco: An Annotated Check-list. British Ornithologists’ Union Check-list 20. British Ornithologists’ Union, Tring, UK. Close , 13 Bergier, P., J. Franchimont, and M. Thévenot (2010). Les oiseaux rares au Maroc. Rapport de la Commission d’Homologation Marocaine Numéro 15 (2009). Go-South Bulletin 7:1–14. Close ), Saudi Arabia, Spain (14 de Juana, E. and el Comité de Rarezas de la Sociedad Española de Ornitología (2003). Observaciones de aves raras en España, 2001. Ardeola. 50(1): 123–149. Close ), and United Arab Emirates (15 Porter, R., and S. Aspinall (2010). Birds of the Middle East. Second edition. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), with an undocumented report from Syria (16 Serra, G., G. Al Qaim, M. S. Abdallah, A. Kanani, and A. K. Assaed (2005) A long-term bird survey in the central Syrian desert (2000–2004): Part 2 - a provisional annotated checklist. Sandgrouse 27: 104–125. Close ) and, most exceptionally, a specimen from Norway (17 Snow, D. W., and C. M. Perrins, Editors (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Concise Edition. Volume 1. Non-passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. Close ).

The Kittlitz's Plover mainly consumes terrestrial invertebrates , chiefly insects (e.g. beetles, flies, bugs, grasshoppers and butterfly and moth larvae) and spiders. It also consumes worms and mollusks. The Kittlitz's Plover sometimes uses foot-trembling when foraging. It may feed during moonlit nights and feeds singly or in flocks of 2–5 birds, rarely up to 50 or more.

This species is rather silent. Calls include a short hard “trip”, “tric”, or plaintive “tu-lit” in flight. When excited, it utters a mellower “pip”, “pip-ip”, or drawn-out “pueeet”. The latter or “qui qui qui qui qui qui” calls are also used in combination with broken-wing displays. A trilled “prrrrew” or “tri-ri-ri-rit” was observed in courtship or territory defense. The alarm call is a gruff “chrrt-grrrt...”, with a repeated “queuuuuvick” by adults to brood when danger threatens, and a special “tick...tick...tick” call is used either to signal all-clear or to summon young (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

The Kittlitz's Plover lays in April in Egypt (18 Ali, D. and Khalil, R. (1998). Breeding behaviour of Kittlitz’s Plover. Dutch Birding. 20(3): 115–118. Close ) and variably throughout rest of its range, laying in 2–12 months of the year. For instance, it lays year-round in Madagascar, but mainly in February to October (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), January to September in Ethiopia (peak May) (6 Ash, J. S., and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: An Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), April to January (peak Jun–Oct) in Zambia (5 Dowsett, R. J., D. R. Aspinwall, and F. Dowsett-Lemaire (2008). The Birds of Zambia. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ), and April to November (peak June to October) in Malawi (19 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2006). The Birds of Malawi: An Atlas and Handbook. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ). This species is monogamous, solitary, or in loose neighborhood groups. It primarily nests at least 20 m apart (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). It is territorial, feeding either inside or outside of its territory, which is predominantly defended by the male. The nest is an exposed shallow scrape (c. 8 cm wide by 2 cm deep) in sand or dry mud (20 Parkes, D.A. (2011). Notes on the birds of Lake Gambue, Mozambique and breeding records of the Lesser Black-winged Plover. Honeyguide. 57(2): 130–133. Close ), lined with plant material, pebbles, and debris, sometimes unlined. A clutch typically contains two eggs (1–3) that are dark maroon-gray with black markings (size 29–33·9 mm × 21–23 mm, mass 5·5–10), laid at intervals of 1–5 days (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Pairs raise 1–2 broods with incubation by both parents—female by day, male by night—for 21–30 days (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ) starting with the second or last egg. Eggs are totally covered with nest material and sand before a disturbed bird leaves the nest. When disturbed, the adult stands up and runs around the nest 2–3 times, making rapid inward-kicking movements (“leaving-scuffle”), in total taking 3–6 seconds, but up to 90 seconds when on damp ground or in high winds. Hatchlings are sometimes covered in the same way. The chick  is pale buff, mottled black above with a dark center line on the back, but no dark band across the nape. The forehead and underparts are white, and the flanks are buffish (hatch weight 4·5–7·2 g) (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Both adults care for young. Chicks fledge within 26–32 days (exceptionally 37 days) at c. 25 g (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ) and are independent soon after. Subsequently, young birds either remain with adults for > 2–3 months (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), disperse locally (8 Lipshutz, S., Remisiewicz, M., Underhill, L.G. and Avni, J. (2011). Seasonal fluctuations in population size and habitat segregation of Kittlitz’s Plover Charadrius pecuarius at Barberspan Bird Sanctuary, North West province, South Africa. Ostrich. 82(3): 207–215. Close ), or gather into flocks. Hatching success is 16–77% (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), fledging success is 0·5 to < 2 young/pair. Mortality is caused mainly by flooding, but also by motor vehicles and predators, e.g. snakes and lizards (18 Ali, D. and Khalil, R. (1998). Breeding behaviour of Kittlitz’s Plover. Dutch Birding. 20(3): 115–118. Close ) (on Madagascar these are also suspected to include feral cats and dogs, Pied Crow (Corvus albus), Black Kite (Milvus migrans) and Grandidier’s mongoose Galidictis grandidieri) (4 Safford, R. J., and A. F. A. Hawkins, Editors (2013). The Birds of Africa. Volume 8. The Malagasy Region. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); birds will move eggs to a new site after heavy rains, and possibly also as an anti-predator reaction. Some birds breed in the first year.

This species is not globally threatened (Least Concern). The population is estimated at up to 475,000 birds, including 100,000–400,000 individuals in Eastern, Central, and South Africa, with 20,000–50,000 in West Africa (although 20,000–30,000 have been estimated in Mali alone) (21 Girard, O., Niagaté, B., Thal, J. and Boutin, J.M. (2009). Les limicoles au Mali, en particulier dans le Delta interieur du Niger. Malimbus. 31(1): 1–19. Close ). 10,000–20,000 are estimated in Madagascar, 1,000–5,000 in Nile Valley, and an unknown number in Southwest Africa and Botswana, but perhaps up to 10,000 (22 Delaney, S. and D. Scott, Editors (2002). Waterbird Population Estimates. Third edition. Wetlands International Global Series No. 12. Wageningen, the Netherlands. Close ). More locally, c. 2,600 birds were recorded on the South African coast, most in the West Cape. 615–1,170 birds, probably breeders, were recorded on the coast of Gabon. The Kittlitz's Plover is locally common on Lake Mabesi, southern Sierra Leone; locally not uncommon in Ghana (where the range is suspected to have contracted) (23 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2014). The Birds of Ghana: An Atlas and Handbook. Tauraco Press, Liège, Belgium. Close ) and Nigeria; generally scarce in Egypt and Gambia. It has adapted well to artificial dams and other modified habitats, at least locally (19 Dowsett-Lemaire, F., and R. J. Dowsett (2006). The Birds of Malawi: An Atlas and Handbook. Tauraco Press & Aves, Liège, Belgium. Close ). Status in Eritrea is unclear (just two records) (6 Ash, J. S., and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: An Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).