Little ringed plover

Description

The little ringed plover (Charadrius dubius) is a small plover.The genus name Charadrius is a Late Latin word for a yellowish bird mentioned in the fourth-century Vulgate.It derives from Ancient Greek kharadrios a bird found in river valleys (kharadra,"ravine").The specific dubius is Latin for doubtful,since Sonnerat,writing in 1776,thought this bird might be just a variant of common ringed plover.Adults have a grey-brown back and wings,a white belly and a white breast with one black neckband.They have a brown cap,a white forehead,a black mask around the eyes with white above and a short dark bill.The legs are flesh-coloured and the toes are all webbed.This species differs from the larger ringed plover in leg colour,the head pattern,and the presence of a clear yellow eye-ring.