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23 April 2016

Breeding Little Ringed Plover - Jubail

Whilst birding the Jubail area recently I found a calling Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius a common migrant to the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Apart from being a passage migrant some birds are also seen in the winter. The species is an early migrant with small numbers seen from January through to early May, breeders remaining through the summer and more migrants in August and September. A few birds stay until November and exceptionally December and they often occur on pools and lagoons sometimes well away from the coast. Some birds have been recorded breeding at freshwater wetlands so I looked around carefully and found two very young chicks. The young birds were feeding along the edge of a small pool on the sabkha and were being carefully looked after by the adult. This is the first time I have seen young birds but have seen adult birds pretending to have broken wings to distract you away from their nest or young so birds breed here every year it would appear.
Little Ringed Plover

Little Ringed Plover

Little Ringed Plover

Little Ringed Plover

Little Ringed Plover

Little Ringed Plover

Little Ringed Plover