- Vanellus duvaucelii
Photo © by Alok Tewari
River Baddi, Himalayan Foothills, Himachal Pradesh, India, 10 June 2013
Identification
29·5–31·5 cm (11½-12.5 in)
- Brown upperparts
- White rump
- Black tail
- Black crest, crown, face and central throat
- Greyish-white neck sides and nape
- Greyish-brown breast band
- White underparts
- Black belly patch
- Black carpal spur ( seen better in the bird on right in the image here )
- White under wings and upper wing secondaries
- Brown upper wing coverts
Photo © by Alok Tewari
Rishikesh, Himalayan Foothills, Uttarakhand Himalayas, India, 5 October 2023
Distribution
Asia found on the rivers of India and Nepal to southwestern China and Indochina. And North Thailand with stragglers as far south as Bangkok
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species[1].
Habitat
Generally found on or near rivers with shingle and sand banks, wet grassland and farmland; and larger water bodies, such as reservoirs.
Behaviour
Breeding
The nest is a shallow ground scrape. The clutch consists of 2 eggs.
Diet
Their diet consists of worms, crustaceans and molluscs. They may also include frogs and tadpoles.
Photo © by Alok Tewari
River Baddi, Himalayan Foothills, Himachal Pradesh, India, 10 June 2013
Vocalisation
Recording by Alok Tewari
Calls given by a nesting pair on perception of threat due to presence of other birds.
River Baddi, Himalayan Foothills, Himachal Pradesh, India, 10 June 2013.
Recording by Alok Tewari
Chik ... chik calls;
Two individuals calling in tandem, one of them sitting on a mid-stream boulder and other on the bank; strong background sound of fast flowing river is present; one call of a White Wagtail in the middle of the recording is also heard.
River Ganga, Rishikesh, Himalayan Foothills, Uttarakhand Himalayas, India, 5 October 2023
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2015. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2015, with updates to August 2015. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2015)
- https://www.hbw.com/species/river-lapwing-vanellus-duvaucelii#Descriptive_notes
- Wikipedia
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) River Lapwing. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 11 April 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/River_Lapwing
External Links
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