Rufuous-chested Dotterel - Falkland Islands

One of our group's key target species on the Falkland Islands was the Rufous-chested Dotterel. We walked up a road from the town of Port Stanley until we reached an area of grasslands and heath. It took a few minutes of searching, but we finally got distant looks at a few and with a little patience we were able to approach one, allowing us some great looks and photo opportunities. A life bird, I was quite excited to set my eyes upon this beauty and capture several satisfying photos, one of which is shown below. Judging from the short grassland habitat, I would assume that this was its nesting area. Most birds from Falkland migrate to the mainland after breeding (HBW Alive, 2017).

A beautiful bird, Rufous-chested Dotterel is readily identified by its reddish-cinnamon chest with a black band separating this from its white underparts. Its bright white supercilia meet on the forehead. Face, cheeks and throat are ash grey. In winter plumage, the breast turns brownish and the head band almost disappears.

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Rufous-chested Dotterel                              Falkland Islands - Gypsy Cove

Happy Birding,

Claude

References:

Wiersma, P., Kirwan, G.M. & Boesman, P. (2017). Rufous-chested Plover (Charadrius modestus). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from http://www.hbw.com/node/53850 on 9 January 2017).