Birds
Two-banded Plover
Charadrius falklandicus · also called two-banded plovers
Dashing forward and pausing abruptly along the tideline in the classic style of its family, a two-banded plover reveals the pair of dark chest bands that give it its name, ready to fake an injury and lead any predator away from its camouflaged nest.
Overview
The two-banded plover, Charadrius falklandicus, is a Least Concern wading bird native to coastal habitat across southern South America and the Falkland Islands. Its distinctive double chest band, classic plover foraging style, and effective broken-wing nest defence make it one of the more visually and behaviourally typical yet successful shorebirds found anywhere in the Southern Hemisphere.
A shorebird that fakes injury to protect its young
When a predator strays too close to its nest, the two-banded plover drops into a convincing broken-wing act, dragging a wing along the ground as though injured, a performance calculated to draw the threat away before flying off unharmed once the nest is safe.
Status
Least Concern, remaining widespread and generally stable across suitable coastal habitat in southern South America and the Falkland Islands.
Two-banded Plover: common questions
Why is it called the two-banded plover?
This species has a pair of dark bands crossing its chest, a distinctive pattern that gives the species its common name and helps separate it from similar plover species found in the same region.
How does the two-banded plover distract predators from its nest?
This species performs a broken-wing distraction display, feigning injury to lure predators away from vulnerable eggs or chicks and leading the threat away from the nest site.
How does the two-banded plover find its food?
This species forages using the classic run-stop-peck style typical of plovers, dashing forward before pausing abruptly to snatch small invertebrates from the sand.
Where does the two-banded plover breed?
This species breeds on open beaches and gravel flats across southern Argentina and Chile as well as the Falkland Islands, laying camouflaged eggs directly on the ground.