Hooded Plovers

The hooded dotterel or hooded plover (''Thinornis cucullatus'') is a species of bird in the family Charadriidae. It is endemic to southern Australia, where it inhabits ocean beaches and subcoastal lagoons. There are two recognised subspecies which form isolated eastern and western populations. The eastern subspecies is of greater conservation concern, with listings varying from Vulnerable in South Australia and Victoria to Critically Endangered in New South Wales.

Taxonomy

The hooded dotterel was placed in genus ''Charadrius'' but in the early 2000s it was reclassified into the genus ''Thinornis'', along with shore plover (''Thinornis novaeseelandiae''). In 2000 the number of mature individuals was estimated at 7,000. Alternative common names include: hooded plover, hoody, ''pluvier à camail'' (in French), ''kappenregenpfeifer'' (in German), and ''chorlito encapuchado'' (in Spanish).

Subspecies

Two subspecies of the hooded dotterel are now recognised.

* ''T. c. cucullatus'' (Vieillot, 1818) southern Australia, Victoria, Queensland, New South Wales, Tasmania and nearby islands. The population stands at 3000 and is declining.
* ''T. c. tregellasi'' ( Mathews, 1912) Western Australia, coasts and inland lakes, Cranbrook, Yalgorup National Park and points south. The population stands at 4000 and appears to be stable.

Description

The hooded dotterel is medium in size for a plover, stocky, and pale in colour. Its length is and its wing-span . It has a black hood and throat with a white collar. Its red bill has a black tip. It has a red eye ring and orange legs. Underparts are white. Males and females are similar. Adults and juveniles are similar except the juveniles do not have the black head and hindneck, which are instead a sandy brown.

Behaviour

A clutch of 1–3 eggs is laid from August to March, which includes also the peak of the Austral summer tourist season in its range and it is thereby heavily impacted by human activities. The eggs are a matte beige or cream colour heavily sprinkled with dark brown and lavender markings, especially at the larger end of the egg. Pyriform in shape, they measure . Eggs hatch in about 30 days. The eastern population eats a variety of invertebrates but little is known of the diet of the western population. Specifically it eats insects, bivalves, and sandhoppers. It is usually seen in pairs or small groups near the water. For breeding it will dig a shallow scrape in sand or gravel above high-water mark and line it with pebbles, seaweed, and other debris.

Threats

The population of hooded dotterels has declined in eastern Australia as a result of disturbance by people, dogs, cats and horses, as well as predation by silver gulls (''Larus novaehollandiae''), ravens (''Corvus spp'') and introduced foxes. Fox predation is a major threat to the western subspecies.

Distribution and habitat

Its natural habitats are freshwater lakes, freshwater marshes, coastal saline lagoons, and sandy beaches. Heavy populations are found on beaches with seaweed and dunes. It is threatened by habitat loss because of its small population and limited native range. It is a non-migratory inhabitant of coastal and subcoastal Western Australia, South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania, and is a vagrant in Queensland.

Conservation

Important Bird Areas

BirdLife International has identified the following sites as being important for hooded dotterel conservation:

;South Australia
* Coffin Bay
* Coorong
* Kangaroo Island

;Tasmania
* Cape Portland
* Eastern Flinders Island
* King Island

* Marion Bay
* Melaleuca to Birchs Inlet
* North-west Tasmanian Coast
* Robbins Passage and Boullanger Bay
* St Helens

;Victoria
* Corner Inlet
* Discovery Bay to Piccaninnie Ponds

* Phillip Island
* Port Fairy to Warrnambool
* Yambuk

;Western Australia
* Lake Gore System
* Lake Warden System
* Pink Lake
* Yalgorup

See also

* Sanderling

References

External links

*

Hooded plover threats and recovery strategies

{{Taxonbar, from=Q10825107

hooded dotterel
Birds of Western Australia
Birds of South Australia
Birds of Victoria (Australia)
Birds of Tasmania
Endemic birds of Australia
hooded dotterel
hooded dotterel
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot