Masked Lapwing, Mary River, Australia
by Venetia Featherstone-Witty
Title
Masked Lapwing, Mary River, Australia
Artist
Venetia Featherstone-Witty
Medium
Photograph - Photographs
Description
The masked lapwing (Vanellus miles), also known as the masked plover and often called the spur-winged plover or just plover in its native range, is a large, common and conspicuous bird native to Australia, particularly the northern and eastern parts of the continent, New Zealand and New Guinea. It spends most of its time on the ground searching for food such as insects and worms and has several distinctive calls. There are two subspecies; the southern novaehollandiae has distinctive black markings on the shoulder and side of the chest, and is sometimes recognized as a separate species, the black-shouldered lapwing (Vanellus novaehollandiae). These brown-black, white and yellow plovers are common in Australian fields and open land.
Masked lapwings are most common around the edges of wetlands and in other moist, open environments, but are adaptable and can often be found in surprisingly arid areas. They can also be found on beaches and coastlines. Vanellus miles novaehollandiae spread naturally to Southland, New Zealand in the 1930s and has now spread throughout New Zealand, where it is recognised as a self-introduced native and known as the spur-winged plover.
FEATURED 12/3/17 in "A Birding Group - Wings"
FEATURED 12/3/17 in "Animal Photographs"
FEATURED 12/3/17 in "Wild Birds of the World"
FEATURED 12/4/17 in "Kingdom Animalia"
FEATURED 12/4/17 in "FAA Portraits - Birds"
FEATURED 12/6/17 in "Australia in Pictures"
Uploaded
December 2nd, 2017
Statistics
Viewed 393 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 03/26/2024 at 4:01 PM
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Comments (8)
Michaela Perryman
Nice find, LF. Congratulations, featured in Birds IN Australia group 10th July 2021
William Tasker
Fascinating bird and a great capture, Venetia! Your beautiful image has been featured by Wild Birds Of The World, a nature photography group. L/F
Don Columbus
Congratulations Venetia, your work is Featured in "A Birding Group - Wings"! I invite you to place it in the group's "2017 Featured Image Archive" Discussion!! L/Tweet