Pacific Golden-Plover

Pluvialis fulva

Appearance:
Medium-sized plover
Moderately long legs
Large head
Large, dark eyes
Golden and black speckled back
Breeding plumage:
    Black from face to belly, bordered with white
    Black speckling along the white border by the underparts and under tail
Non-breeding plumage:
    Buff wash with dark speckling on the breast
Juvenile:
    Light barring on chest and flanks
    Yellowish head and breast

Listen to its call. 

When I initially spotted this shorebird, I thought it was a Black-bellied Plover as they are fairly common around Victoria. It wasn't until I was reviewing my photos later that I realized my mistake. There are a number of differences between the two species, one of which I found a bit ironic. There is more black on the belly of the Pacific Golden-Plover then on the Black-bellied variety.  

Learn more about the Pacific Golden-Plover.

Semipalmated Plover

Charadrius semipalmatus

Appearance:

• Small plover
• Grey-brown above
• White below
• Single, dark chest band
• Black breast band, sides of head, and forecrown in breeding adults; brown in non-breeding adults and juveniles.
• Yellowish-orange legs
• Short, dark bill with orange base  (all black on juvenile)

Listen to its call.

Having no obligations for the day, I suggested to my husband that we take the ferry to Sidney Spit for a picnic. It was a lovely day for it; sunny, but not too hot, and lots of shorebirds to photograph.  Perfect! 

A number of flocks of these birds were around the beach, foraging for food on the tidal flats. All of the ones I saw had black bills, making me wonder if perhaps I'd made a mistake with their identity. Then I caught sight of their feet, which reassured me. Semipalmated is an adjective used to describe wading birds that have toes webbed for part of their length. Oddly enough, I only discovered this when I looked up the word in the dictionary. Why don't the bird books tell you these things? 

 Learn more about the Semipalmated Plover.

Black-bellied Plover

Pluvialis squatarola

Description:

Medium-sized shorebird
Short, thick black bill
Short neck
Dark legs
Dark wing tips

Winter adult:

    Gray head 

    White underparts

    Gray, mottled back

Breeding plumage:
    Black from face to belly 

Listen to its call. 

I saw a group of these birds on the rocks at Clover Point yesterday afternoon. They were bigger than the Dunlin feeding close by. The tide was low and they were having quite a feast until three Black Oystercatchers came along and frightened them all away.

No wonder I had difficulty identifying this bird.  There wasn't a black-belly to be seen.  However, in breeding plumage (pictured below), it is black from the face to the belly. 

Learn more about the Black-bellied Plover. 

Killdeer

Charadrius vociferus

Appearance:
Large plover
Large, round head
Short, dark bill
Large eye
Brownish-tan upper parts
White underparts
Two black bands on chest
White collar and forehead
Orange rump, visible in flight

Listen to its call.

I ventured back to the rocks by the marina today to see who was hanging about. Although the sun was out, the wind at the shore was bitter so I didn't last very long. I just managed to snap a few pictures of these birds before my hands turned completely numb.

Word history from the Merriam Webster Student Dictionary:
Killdeers are not vicious birds. They have no special hatred of deer, and they do not eat venison.

Whew ... I'm glad we got that cleared up.

Incidentally, both its common and Latin names come from its distinctive call, "kill-deear". Vociferus means shouting noisily.

Learn more about the Killdeer.