Ringed Eurasian Whimbrel & Tibetan Sand-Plover
Why in News?
The Ringed Eurasian Whimbrel and the Marked Tibetan Sand-Plover are in the news following their highly significant re-sighting on the Kerala (Keralam) coast.
About the Eurasian Whimbrel
- Scientific Classification & Identity: It is a large, greyish-brown wading bird belonging to the Scolopacidae family. It was historically categorized alongside the Hudsonian Whimbrel but is now treated as a distinct species (Numenius phaeopus).
- Physical Characteristics: Notable for its long, down-curved (decurved) bill with a distinct kink, dark eye-stripes, and a repetitive, high-pitched seven-note call.
- Migratory Range: It breeds in the subarctic tundra regions of Siberia, Iceland, and Northern Europe during summer, then flies massive distances to winter along the coastlines of Africa, South Asia (including India), and Southeast Asia.
- Diet: Their diet is highly adaptable; they consume berries and insects on their northern breeding grounds, but switch entirely to crabs and aquatic invertebrates while wintering on coastal mudflats and mangroves.
- Conservation Status: Evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, though regional populations (like those in Iceland) face severe threats from climate change, habitat destruction, and avian flu.
About the Tibetan Sand-Plover
- Taxonomic Realignment: Formerly classified as a subspecies of the "Lesser Sand-Plover," genetic studies in 2022/2023 officially split it into a distinct species (Anarhynchus atrifrons). Genetically, it is actually closer to the Greater Sand-Plover than the Siberian Sand-Plover.
- Physical Appearance: A medium-sized plover with a pale throat, brown back, and white belly. During the breeding season, adults develop a striking black eye mask and a bright orange chest and neck.
- Habitat & Range: They breed at high altitudes in the mountains and plateaus of Central Asia (including the Tibetan Plateau, Pamir Mountains, and northern India). They winter extensively along the shorelines of East and South Africa, Southern Arabia, and South/Southeast Asia.
- Behaviour & Site Fidelity: They exhibit moderate-to-strong site fidelity, frequently returning to the exact same coastal wintering patches year after year. Outside of breeding, they are strictly coastal and are almost never found inland.
