Pacific Golden-Plover
Pluvialis fulva
Silhouette: Emily Willoughby · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderCharadriiformes (Shorebirds and Allies)
- FamilyCharadriidae (Plovers and Lapwings)
- GenusPluvialis (Golden Plovers and Grey Plover)
- SpeciesPluvialis fulva (Pacific Golden-Plover)
About the Pacific Golden-Plover
The Pacific golden plover (Pluvialis fulva) is a migratory shorebird that breeds during summer in Alaska and Siberia. During nonbreeding season, this medium-sized plover migrates widely across the Pacific. The Pacific golden plover was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the other plovers in the genus Charadrius and coined the binomial name Charadrius fulvus. Gmelin based his description on the "Fulvous plover" that had been described in 1785 by the English ornithologist John Latham from specimens from Tahiti. The Pacific golden plover is now placed in the genus Pluvialis that was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760. The genus name is Latin and means relating to rain, from pluvia, 'rain'. It was believed that the plovers flocked when rain was imminent. The specific epithet is also from Latin and means 'tawny' or 'yellowish-brown'. The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.
Adults are about 25 cm (9.8 in) long with a wingspan averaging 61 cm (24 in) At their lightest, fat free,... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Pacific Golden-Plover in Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park
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Charadrius leschenaultii
Eastern Sand Plover
Charadrius veredus
Northern Lapwing
Vanellus vanellus
Kentish Plover
Charadrius alexandrinus
Grey-headed Lapwing
Vanellus cinereus
Common Ringed Plover
Charadrius hiaticula
Curlew Sandpiper
Calidris ferruginea
Common Redshank
Tringa totanus
Wood Sandpiper
Tringa glareola
Common Sandpiper
Actitis hypoleucos
Black-winged Stilt
Himantopus himantopus
Pied Avocet
Recurvirostra avosetta
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.