Little Ringed Plover at saltpans

 Little Ringed Plover (Charadrius dubius)

There were a number of British birders on the island at the beginning of March, some of whom contacted me directly and/or posted reports in BirdForum. One of the visiting observers (T.R.) discovered a Little Ringed Plover (Charadrius dubius) at the saltpans in Fuencaliente on March 5, presumably the same bird I photographed this evening at the same location.

 Little Ringed Plover (Charadrius dubius)

Also present at the saltpans today were two Ringed Plovers (Charadrius hiaticula), one White Wagtail (Motacilla alba) and several Turnstones (Arenaria interpres). Unfortunately, I was unable to find the banded Dunlin (Calidris alpina) reported earlier in the month.

Little Ringed Plover - in summer plumage

The Little Ringed Plover is resident on Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura, and is a passage migrant to all the other Canary Islands. I have seen several on La Palma in recent years, more frequently at the irrigation basins in Las Martelas (Los Llanos de Aridane).

Visisting observers are requested to send their sightings of migratory birds on the Canaries to the Regional Recorder, Juan Antonio Lorenzo: jalorenzo@seo.org Alternatively, you can send your records to me, and I will forward them. Sightings of interest are published in Ardeola, the SEO/Birdlife magazine.