Crab-Plover
Dromas ardeola
Utterly unmistakable large shorebird: gleaming white adult has a black back, black flight feathers, and a very heavy dark bill, which is used to dispatch crustaceans and other invertebrates. Narrow dark smudge around the eye imparts a sleepy appearance. Juvenile similar to adult but back pale brown. Inhabits sandy beaches and shorelines, as well as coral outcrops, rocky coasts, and mangroves. Forages in flocks, often giving raucous, tern-like calls in flight.
Identification
This bird resembles a plover, but has very long grey legs and a strong heavy black bill similar to a tern. Its black-and-white plumage and long-necked upright posture with heavy bill makes it distinctive and unmistakable. Its bill is unique among waders, and specialised for eating crabs. It has partially webbed toes. The plumage is white except for black on its back and in the primary feathers of the wings. They are noisy birds, calling frequently on their breeding sites and in their wintering grounds. The usual call is a ka similar to that of the bar-tailed godwit but repeated rapidly. Flocks may produce a whinnying sound that rises and at in the breeding season produce whistling kew-ki-ki notes.<p>Males and females are not easily distinguished but males have a heavier and longer bill. Juveniles have the black on the mantle, greyish and remain in this plumage for a year. Flocks fly in lines or "V" formations.<p>The crab-plover is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Dromas ardeola
- Authority
- Paykull, 1805
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Dromadidae
- Genus
- Dromas
Range and habitat
It is resident on the coasts and islands of the Indian Ocean, where it feeds on crabs and other small animals. They are gregarious and will feed in large groups, at night and during dawn and dusk as well as during the day; this crepuscular and nocturnal behaviour is more common during the breeding season. They breed around the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf, Red Sea and Somalia in the months of April to July then disperse across the Indian Ocean in August as far as the Andaman Islands and Sri Lanka in the east and Tanzania and Madagascar.
- Breeding range
- AF, IO : sandy coasts and islands of Red Sea, Arabian Pen. and Persian Gulf (nw Indian Ocean)
- Non-breeding range
- e AF, India : tropical to subtropical Indian Ocean coasts: sw Indian Ocean coast to Mozambique and KwaZulu Natal, Malagasy region including coralline atolls of s, c Seychelles, Chagos Arch., Maldives (wc Indian Ocean), w coast of India, Sri Lanka and Andaman Is.
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Small and stout forest-dweller that hops and buzzes about in the canopy like a large, active insect. Note male’s iridescent dark blue back, bright red chest, and black line extending down the white belly. As with many other flowerpeckers, the female is considerably duller, with a red rump patch being the only patch of bright color on her otherwise gray-brown plumage. Endemic to Sumba, where found in wooded habitats throughout the island. Gives a short, descending series of whistles, as well as piercing high-pitched notes.
Brehm's Tiger-Parrot
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Barred Antthrush
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Compact brown bird with a stubby black bill. Warm reddish brown with heavy black-and-white barring on the undersides, face, and eyebrow. Walks around the ground in dense montane forest with a springy gait, bobbing its tail up and down with each slow step. Exceptionally timid bird heard far more often than seen; listen for its long hooting song, an accelerating series of low toots.
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