Pacific Golden Plover

Pluvialis fulva (Gmelin, JF, 1789)

25 cmLength44 cmWingspan135 gWeight

This medium-sized plover has a black face and breast and a gold-and-black-spotted back in the male during the breeding season, with mottled rufous, gray and yellow winter plumage.

Busiest months: September · Most records: China, United States, Australia

Looks like American Golden Plover

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

Gold and black spots on the crown, back and wings in breeding plumage
Breeding male has a black face, neck and breast bordered with white feather edges
Black bill; legs and feet gray to black
Non-breeding plumage mottled rufous, gray and yellow, with a paler belly

Male, female and young

In breeding plumage, the female's black breast is spotted and less distinct; sexes alike in non-breeding plumage.

Similar species

American Golden Plover

Pacific Golden Plover is more slender and longer-legged than American Golden Plover, with usually more yellow on the back.

Where and when it's recorded

Pacific Golden Plover has been recorded at 1,278 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 104 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

St. Paul IslandUnited States4,232 records
GambellUnited States2,112 records
Sungei Buloh Wetland ReserveSingapore1,875 records

More places

Mai Po Nature ReserveHong Kong (China)1,817 records
Pak Thale Nature ReserveThailand1,700 records
Aogu Wetland IBATaiwan (China)1,652 records
Lanyang River Estuary IBA – XinnanTaiwan (China)1,269 records
Hunter Wetlands National Park – Stockton SandspitAustralia1,220 records
Kinmen – Wujiang River EstuaryChina1,108 records
Bang Pu – Recreation CenterThailand909 records

Countries and regions with the most records

China United States Australia Thailand India Singapore New Zealand Philippines

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The Pacific golden plover (Pluvialis fulva) is a migratory shorebird that breeds during summer in Alaska and Siberia. During nonbreeding season, this medium-sized plover migrates widely across the Pacific.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Pacific Golden Plover?

The Pacific Golden Plover is about 25 cm long, with a wingspan of 44 cm and weighs around 135 g.

Where does the Pacific Golden Plover live?

Its breeding range: Palearctic: Arctic mainland Russia and subarctic eastern Russia and western Alaska: Yamal Peninsula (north-central Siberia) to Chukotskiy Peninsula, northern Kamchatka and northern Sea of Okhotsk (eastern Siberia), and Wrangel Island (north of northeastern Siberia); Chukchi and Bering Sea coasts of western Alaska and satellites, including St. Lawrence Island (northern Bering Sea). It is most often recorded in China, United States and Australia.

When is the best time to see the Pacific Golden Plover?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in September (Northern Hemisphere).

Is the Pacific Golden Plover endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Pacific Golden Plover as Least Concern.

What does the Pacific Golden Plover eat?

Main food: Omnivore.

What family is the Pacific Golden Plover in?

It belongs to the family Plovers (Charadriidae), order Charadriiformes.

At a glance

Length: 25 cm
Wingspan: 44 cm
Weight: 135 g
Habitat: Grassland
Diet: Omnivore
Lifestyle: Active on the ground
Migration: Migratory
Conservation: Least Concern

More measurements

Wing: 159 mm
Tail: 58 mm
Bill: 25 mm
Tarsus: 40 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

Palearctic: Arctic mainland Russia and subarctic eastern Russia and western Alaska: Yamal Peninsula (north-central Siberia) to Chukotskiy Peninsula, northern Kamchatka and northern Sea of Okhotsk (eastern Siberia), and Wrangel Island (north of northeastern Siberia); Chukchi and Bering Sea coasts of western Alaska and satellites, including St. Lawrence Island (northern Bering Sea)

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2