Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus)

Description: Semipalmated plovers are a tiny shorebird. They have yellow legs and a short beak that is yellow at the base and black at the tip. They have a white underside and a brown back with a stripe wrapping around their neck. Plovers are smaller and have a shorter beak than most shore birds found on the Oregon Coast. Although they have similar marking to their relative the snowy plover, but they are a dark brown rather than dusty gray. They forage in large groups on the shore and are known to mingle with other species.

Habitat: Nesting throughout Alaska and Northern Canada, and wintering on both Pacific and Atlantic coasts, semipalmated plovers have an extensive range. They live on the shore from Oregon to Peru and from Delaware to Argentina.

Nesting: Plovers build scrape nests on tundra near wetlands or other feeding areas. Females lay 4 eggs. Both parents incubate the eggs for 23 to 25 days. Like other shore birds, chicks can forage for themselves quickly after hatching. Young fledges at 23 to 31 days old.

Diet: Semipalmated plovers have a diverse diet due to their wide range. When inland, these plovers eat many species of insects, larva, and worms. Along coasts, plovers forage for marine invertebrates in the sand.

Tide Pool Tidbits:

• The name semipalmated is in reference to the partial webbing that these plovers have between their toes, unusual in the plover family.

• This partial webbing allows the semipalmated plover to swim short distances, which helps them forage in a wider range of areas.

Reference: The Cornell Lab, Audubon