Northern Lapwing

Northern Lapwing

Peewit, Pewit, Tuit, Tew-it, Green plover, Pyewipe, Lapwing

Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Family
Genus
SPECIES
Vanellus vanellus
Population size
5.6-105 Mlnlnn
Life Span
3.5-10 years
Weight
128-330
4.5-11.6
goz
g oz 
Length
28-33
11-13
cminch
cm inch 
Wingspan
67-87
219.8-285.4
mft
m ft 

The Тorthern lapwing (Vanellus vanellus) is a wading bird common through temperate Eurasia. The name lapwing has been variously attributed to the "lapping" sound the wings of these birds make in flight; from the irregular progress in flight due to their large wings or from their habit of drawing potential predators away from their nest by trailing a wing as if broken.

Di

Diurnal

Ca

Carnivore

In

Insectivores

Ve

Vermivorous

Te

Terrestrial

Te

Territorial

Co

Congregatory

Ov

Oviparous

Pr

Precocial

Wa

Wading birds

Se

Serial monogamy

Hi

Highly social

Fl

Flocking

Mi

Migrating

N

starts with

Appearance

The northern lapwing has rounded wings and a crest. It is also the shortest-legged of the lapwings. It is mainly black and white, but the back is tinted green. The male has a long crest and a black crown, throat, and breast contrasting with an otherwise white face. Females and young birds have shorter crests and less strongly marked heads, but plumages are otherwise quite similar.

Distribution

Geography

Northern lapwings are found throughout temperate Eurasia. They are highly migratory over most of their extensive range, wintering further south as far as North Africa, northern India, Nepal, Bhutan, and parts of China. However, lowland breeders in the westernmost areas of Europe are residents. Northern lapwings inhabit wet grasslands, meadows, swampy heaths, bogs, marshes, other wetlands, and cultivated areas.

Northern Lapwing habitat map

Climate zones

Northern Lapwing habitat map
Northern Lapwing
Public Domain Dedication (CC0)

Habits and Lifestyle

Outside of the breeding season, Northern lapwings are very gregarious birds. They feed in mixed flocks with Golden plovers and Black-headed gulls and often migrate in large flocks. In winter, these birds like to form huge flocks on open land, particularly arable land, and mud flats. Northern plovers prefer to feed at night when there is moonlight. They are very vocal birds in the breeding season, constantly calling during the crazed tumbling display flight performed by the male. The typical contact call of these birds is a loud, shrill ‘pee-wit’ from which they get their other name of peewit. Displaying males usually make a wheezy ‘pee-wit, wit wit, eeze wit’ during their display flight; these birds also make squeaking or mewing sounds.

Group name
Seasonal behavior
Bird's call

Diet and Nutrition

Northern lapwings have a carnivorous (insectivorous, vermivorous) diet. They feed primarily on insects and also take spiders, worms, ants, flies, moths, crickets, and snails.

Mating Habits

MATING BEHAVIOR
REPRODUCTION SEASON
late March-early June
INCUBATION PERIOD
21-28 days
BABY NAME
chick
web.animal_clutch_size
3-4 eggs

Northern lapwings are serially monogamous and form pairs only for a single breeding season. They are solitary and very territorial nesters. Both parents defend noisily and aggressively the nest and young against all intruders, even cattle. The breeding season occurs between late March and early June. The female lays 3 to 4 eggs in a ground scrape and both parents incubate them for about 21-28 days. The chicks precocial; they are can walk soon after they are dry and are able to swim within 24 hours after hatching. Soon after hatching, the pair with their young leave their nest; they raise their chicks at a different site where the young can feed by themselves but both parents still brood and guard them for some time. Young Northern lapwings become reproductively mature and start to breed when they are one year old.

Population

Population threats

Northern lapwings suffer from intensive agricultural techniques. In the lowlands, this includes the loss of rough grassland, conversion to arable or improved grassland, loss of mixed farms, and switch from spring- to autumn-sown crops. In the uplands, the losses may have been due to increases in grazing density. Other threats include heavy predation of nests and chicks, the loss of breeding habitats, and overhunting, especially along their winter migration routes.

Population number

According to IUCN Red List, the total population size of the Northern lapwing is around 5,600,000-10,500,000 individuals. The European population consists of 1,590,000-2,580,000 pairs, which equates to 3,190,000-5,170,000 mature individuals. Currently, this species is classified as Near Threatened (NT) on the IUCN Red List, and its numbers today are decreasing.

References

1. Northern lapwing Wikipedia article - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_lapwing
2. Northern lapwing on The IUCN Red List site - https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22693949/111044786
3. Xeno-canto bird call - https://xeno-canto.org/707137

More Fascinating Animals to Learn About