Black Bellied Plover in wet sand at the beach
The grey plover (Pluvialis squatarola), known as the black-bellied plover in North America, is a medium-sized plover breeding in Arctic regions. It is a long-distance migrant, with a nearly worldwide coastal distribution when not breeding. The face and neck are black with a white border; they have a black breast and a white rump. The tail is white with black barring. The bill and legs are black. They moult to winter plumage in mid August to early September and retain this until April; this being a fairly plain grey above, with a grey-speckled breast and white belly. The juvenile and first-winter plumages, held by young birds from fledging until about one year old, are similar to the adult winter plumage but with the back feathers blacker with creamy white edging.
Size: 3768px × 2512px
Location: Elkhorn Slough, Monterey, California, United States
Photo credit: © Randy Stiefer / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
Keywords: animal, animalia, animals, aves, bay, behavior, behaviors, bird, birds, california, carnivore, concept, conservation, county, eating, elkhorn, fish, flight, fly, flying, fowl, marine, monterey, natural, nature, ocean, oceanic, sea, slough, water, waterfowl, wetland, wetlands, wildlife
