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Birds of Zihuatanejo

CLASS AVES

-Animals (Kingdom Animalia)

-Chordates (Phylum Chordata)

-Vertebrates (Subphylum Vertebrata)

-Birds (Class Aves)

-Shorebirds and Allies (Order Charadriiformes)

-Plovers and Lapwings (Family Charadriidae)

-Golden Plovers and Grey Plover (Genus Pluvialis)

-Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola)


The Black-bellied Plover It is the largest of the plovers, with a length of about 11 inches and a wingspan of about 23 inches It walks rapidly, then stops to watch for and snatch prey from the ground. The diet consists of aquatic invertebrates, such as mollusks, crustaceans, and worms, as well as insects. It can be found on shorelines, mudflats, and beaches, but also in flooded fields and along lakeshores during migration.

Black-bellied Plover

Pluvialis squatarola

Diet

  • Primarily marine invertebrates, including crabs, marine worms, molluscs, shrimp, amphipods, and aquatic insects.

  • Also feeds on small crustaceans, insect larvae, and occasionally berries and seeds during migration.

  • Forages by walking across mudflats and beaches, stopping frequently to pick prey from the surface or probe shallow mud.

Range

  • Breeds in the high Arctic of Alaska, Canada, and Eurasia.

  • Winters along the coasts of North America, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, South America, Africa, Asia, and Australia.

  • A common winter visitor to the Zihuatanejo region, where it inhabits beaches, mudflats, estuaries, coastal lagoons, rocky shores, and tidal flats.

  • Most abundant from September through April.

Male / Female

  • Male (breeding): Bold black face, throat, breast, and belly, contrasting sharply with a white forehead and white sides of the neck; black-and-white mottled upperparts.

  • Female (breeding): Similar pattern but usually duller, with more brown mottling above and less extensive black below.

  • Non-breeding adults: Both sexes are very similar, with gray-and-white mottled upperparts, white underparts, and a dark patch behind the eye.

  • Sexes are difficult to distinguish outside the breeding season, when plumage is nearly identical.

Size

  • Length: 27–30 cm (10.6–11.8 in)

  • Wingspan: 71–83 cm (28–33 in)

  • Weight: 190–320 g (6.7–11.3 oz)

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