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legs and a crimson wattle, the throat and crown are black. It is common in
open country near water and lays its eggs in scrapes or natural depressions
on ground. The nest is very difficult to locate because the eggs match the
colour of the surroundings. Its loud call ‘did he do it’ often indicates the
presence of the bird in the countryside.
Maharashtra has seven species of migratory plovers belonging to the
genus Pluvialis. They frequent mudflats and saltpans, river banks and seashores,
feeding on insect larvae and crustaceans of many kinds. A typical
example of this subfamily is the eastern golden plover (Pluvialis
dominica) with a thick head, large eyes and a stout bill. The plumage is
mottled white brown and golden yellow above. It is found in Maharashtra
between August and May. Its breeding grounds are in Siberia.
The lesser sand plover (Charadrius mongolus) is another wader found
along beaches, mudflats and creeks, in many parts of the State. In its
winter plumage the bird is ashy-brown and fulvous above and white tinged
with rufous below. It has a black bill and greenish grey legs.
A slightly smaller bird of the same Subfamily is the little ringed
plover (Charadrius dubius). Its white forehead, white neck with a
prominent black colour are good identification marks. One of the large
members of Charadriidae family are whimbrels and curlews which are of
the size of a domestic hen, but with very large downcurved bills. The
whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus) and the curlew (Numenius arquata) are
found along the sea coast and tidal creeks. They are good sporting birds
and have been greatly persecuted. The whimbrel is slightly smaller than
the curlew with a pale coronal band which the curlew lacks.
The redshank (Tringa totanus) and greenshank (Tringa nebularia) are
rather similar looking water birds found in the same kind of locality. The
redshank has red legs and white rump while the greenshank which is
slightly larger has olive grey legs and its bill is slightly up-curved.
Perhaps the commonest among the Charadriidae is the sandpiper
(Tringa hypoleucos). This olive-brown bird with white underparts
FAUNA 558