Ringed Plover

The Ringed Plover is a small plover with a grey-brown back and wings, a white belly and a white breast with a single black neck band. It has a brown cap, a white forehead, a black mask around the eyes and a short orange and black bill. The legs are orange and only the outer two toes are slightly webbed. The juvenile Ringed Plover is duller than the adult in colour with an often incomplete grey-brown breast band, a dark bill and dull yellowish-grey legs.

The Ringed Plover breeds on open ground on beaches or sandflats across northern Eurasia and in Arctic north east Canada. Some birds breed inland and in western Europe they nest as far south as northern France. It is migratory and winters in coastal areas south to Africa.

Date: 9th November 2021

Location: Shoeburyness, Essex