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PLATE 36: LAPWINGS
Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus pm, wv
L: 30. Unmistakable with long, thin, upturned crest and greenish upperparts. Underparts clean
white with broad black breast-band and rich burnt-orange undertail. In rather flappy flight, broad,
rounded wings show no wing-bar. In winter, upperparts have narrow pale scaling to feathers.
Juvenile lacks tall crest, instead having scruffy, spiky tuft on nape. Often in large flocks outside
breeding season. Voice Loud, shrill peeo-vit uttered in tumbling display flight over breeding grounds.
Habitat Open fields, marshes, shallow pools and coastal flats. Note Passage and winter hatched,
scarce in south.Spur-winged Lapwing Vanellus spinosus pm, wv
L: 26. W: 75. Elegant, long-legged plover with black head and underparts and contrasting white
cheeks and sides of neck. In flight, tricoloured wing pattern: conspicuous white band between
black flight feathers and sandy wing-coverts; also broad black tail-band; from below black belly
and flight feathers contrast with white underwing-coverts. Juvenile similar to adult. Legs black.
Voice Noisy in breeding area; alarm call is a shrill Oystercatcher-like dwitt-dwitt or kwitt-kwitt.
Habitat Fresh and saline marshes, irrigated land, with short vegetation. Note Dispersal and
passage hatched; vagrant Gulf States.Grey-headed Lapwing Vanellus cinereus V
L: 35. W: 75. Grey head and neck, black lower breast separating neck from white belly. Brown back.
Bill distinctive: yellow with black tip. Eyes red, legs yellow. In flight has upperwing pattern similar
to White-tailed Lapwing, but tail white with black patch like Sociable Lapwing. Voice Flight call
a sharp kick-kick. Habitat Wet grasslands and fields, marshes. Note Vagrant Oman, from E Asia.Red-wattled Lapwing Vanellus indicus RB
L: 33. W: 80. Rather large, colourful plover; easily identified by red bill, eye-ring and wattles, bright
yellow legs, black head and centre of breast. Flight light with slow wingbeats, showing similar
wing pattern to Spur-winged and White-tailed Lapwings, but tail has black subterminal band
with broad white terminal band; yellow feet project distinctly beyond tail. Juvenile much duller
with chin and throat almost white, black areas grey-brown, and wattle is tiny or absent. Fairly
confiding. Voice Noisy; loud and shrill alarm notes rendered as did-he-do-it, pity-to-do-it. Habitat
Open country, usually near fresh water, and showing preference for grassy fields and agricultural
land. Note Dispersal as hatched.Sociable Lapwing Vanellus gregarius wv, pm
L: 29. Lapwing-sized, with more upright stance, especially when alert. In breeding plumage easily
told by long white supercilium, joining on nape, black crown and chestnut-black belly. In winter,
loses belly-patch, becomes mottled on breast and supercilium is less distinct (but white forehead
usually quite prominent). Juvenile, which is browner than adult, has buffish wash to forehead and
supercilium, and pale feather-edgings on upperparts. Legs dark. In flight, shows fairly rounded
wings, with conspicuous black, white and brownish upperwing pattern and black band on tip of
tail. Typical plover actions on the ground, making short runs with head tucked into body, stopping
to peck at ground or stand with head erect. Often in flocks, on passage and in winter sometimes
with Northern Lapwings, golden plovers and coursers. Voice Harsh chark-chark-chark flight call.
Habitat Steppes and bare or cultivated fields (e.g. with winter cereals); rare on coast. Note Passage
and winter hatched; vagrant Bahrain, Kuwait, Yemen.White-tailed Lapwing Vanellus leucurus WV, pm
L: 28. Slender and graceful, most closely resembling Sociable Lapwing in winter plumage but
smaller and readily told by plain head (accentuating dark eye), longer, deep waxy-yellow legs
(which protrude in flight) and, in flight, all-white tail. Juvenile paler on neck and breast, dark-mottled
on upperparts with dark cap and faint brown tip to tail. When feeding, tips down so steeply that it
almost stands on its head! Voice High-pitched kee-vee-ik, persistently repeated at breeding sites.
Habitat Fresh or saline pools, marshes and wet plains; may nest colonially. Note Range expanding;
passage and winter hatched.