Greater Sand Plover Charadrius leschenaultii
Greater Sand Plover, Cairns, Queensland, Australia, November 2010 - click for larger image Cairns, Queensland, Australia
November 2010

The Greater Sand Plover breeds in deserts and semi-deserts from Turkey and the Middle East through the Caucasus and central Asia to western China and southern Siberia. In the non-breeding season it migrates to the coasts and estuaries of northern and eastern Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, India, south-east Asia and Australia. There is a distribution map at Planet of Birds.

Greater Sand Plover, Cairns, Queensland, Australia, November 2010 - click for larger image In non-breeding plumage, shown here, it is difficult to distinguish from Lesser Sand Plover C. mongolus but the bill is heavier and longer than the distance from the base of the bill to the rear of the eye. The head is also more angular with a sloping forehead and the legs are longer, especially above the "knee".

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