Grey-headed Lapwing
Vanellus cinereus
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderCharadriiformes (Shorebirds and Allies)
- FamilyCharadriidae (Plovers and Lapwings)
- GenusVanellus (Lapwings)
- SpeciesVanellus cinereus (Grey-headed Lapwing)
About the Grey-headed Lapwing
The grey-headed lapwing (Vanellus cinereus) is a lapwing species which breeds in northeast China and Japan. The mainland population winters in northern Southeast Asia from northeastern India to Cambodia. The Japanese population winters, at least partially, in southern Honshū.
This species has occurred as a vagrant in Russia, the Philippines, Indonesia, New South Wales, Australia, Telangana and Sri Lanka, as well as Sweden and England. The grey-headed lapwing is 34–37 cm long. It has a grey head and neck, darker grey breast band and white belly. The back is brown, the rump is white and the tail is black. This is a striking species in flight, with black primaries, white under wings and upper wing secondaries, and brown upper wing coverts.
Adults of both sexes are similarly plumaged, but males are slightly larger than females. Young birds have the white areas of plumage tinged with grey, a less distinct breast band, and pale fringes to the upperpart and wing covert feathers. The call of the grey-headed lapwing is a sharp chee-it.
This species nests from April to July in wet grassland, rice fields and marshland edges. It winters in similar habitat and... Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Manas National Park
Red-wattled Lapwing
Vanellus indicus
River Lapwing
Vanellus duvaucelii
Northern Lapwing
Vanellus vanellus
Yellow-wattled Lapwing
Vanellus malabaricus
Pacific Golden-Plover
Pluvialis fulva
Green Sandpiper
Tringa ochropus
Common Sandpiper
Actitis hypoleucos
Common Snipe
Gallinago gallinago
Bronze-winged Jacana
Metopidius indicus
Barred Buttonquail
Turnix suscitator
Greater Painted-Snipe
Rostratula benghalensis
Small Pratincole
Glareola lactea
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kaziranga National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 2 | Sundarbans National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Keoladeo National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Manas National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Chitwan National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 6 | Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park | 🇲🇳 Mongolia | |
| 7 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 8 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 9 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 10 | Kanha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 11 | Khao Luang National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 12 | Cuc Phuong National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 13 | Royal Bardia National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 14 | Royal Manas National Park | 🇧🇹 Bhutan | |
| 15 | Cat Tien National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam |
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Grey-headed Lapwing in Manas National Park?
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Grey-headed Lapwing sighting in Manas National Park, based on 128 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Grey-headed Lapwing in Manas National Park?
December has the highest sighting rate for Grey-headed Lapwing in Manas National Park in our monthly data.