The tawny-throated dotterel (''Oreopholus ruficollis'') is a species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

in the family

Charadriidae The bird family Charadriidae includes the plovers, dotterels, and lapwings, about 64 to 68 species in all. Taxonomy The family Charadriidae was introduced (as Charadriadæ) by the English zoologist William Elford Leach in a guide to the conten ...

, the plovers and their relatives. It is found in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

, and

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

Taxonomy and systematics

The tawny-throated dotterel is the only living member of its genus, though an extinct species ''O. orcesi'' is known from fossil remains. It has two subspecies, the

nominate Nomination is part of the process of selecting a candidate for either election to a public office, or the bestowing of an honor or award. A collection of nominees narrowed from the full list of candidates is a short list. Political office In the ...

''O. r. ruficollis'' and ''O. r. pallidus''. Some authors have suggested that the two deserve further investigation because they have different plumage .Wiersma, P., G. M. Kirwan, and P. F. D. Boesman (2020). Tawny-throated Dotterel (''Oreopholus ruficollis''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.tatdot1.01 retrieved December 5, 2022

Description

The tawny-throated dotterel is long and weighs . The sexes are alike and have no seasonal changes in plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies are mostly rich buff, with heavy dark streaking on the back. The have a white chin, an orange-tawny throat, gray neck and breast, and a small black patch on the belly. Their white underwing shows in flight. Juveniles have a buff throat, less dense streaking on the back, and paler underparts with a brown belly patch. Subspecies ''O. r. pallidus'' is very similar to the nominate but smaller and overall paler.

Distribution and habitat

Subspecies ''O. r. pallidus'' of the tawny-throated dotterel has a limited range; it is found in coastal northern Peru only as far south as the

Department of La Libertad La Libertad (; in English: ''The Liberty'') is a region in northwestern Peru. Formerly it was known as the Department of La Libertad ('). It is bordered by the Lambayeque, Cajamarca and Amazonas regions on the north, the San Martín Region on t ...

. What is assumed to be this subspecies has been recorded as a

vagrant Vagrancy is the condition of homelessness without regular employment or income. Vagrants (also known as bums, vagabonds, rogues, tramps or drifters) usually live in poverty and support themselves by begging, scavenging, petty theft, temporar ...

in Ecuador. The nominate subspecies is found from southern Peru south through western Bolivia, Chile, and western Argentina into

Tierra del Fuego Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for "Land of the Fire", rarely also Fireland in English) is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of the main island, Isla G ...

and east through southern Argentina into Uruguay and southern Brazil. It has also been recorded as a vagrant on the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...

.Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, J. F. Pacheco, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 24 July 2022. Species Lists of Birds for South American Countries and Territories. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCCountryLists.htm retrieved July 24, 2022 The tawny-throated dotterel inhabits grasslands,

heath A heath () is a shrubland habitat found mainly on free-draining infertile, acidic soils and characterised by open, low-growing woody vegetation. Moorland is generally related to high-ground heaths with—especially in Great Britain—a cooler ...

shrublands, and fields and meadows. The nominate subspecies is found in the puna of the Andes as high as . ''O. r. pallidus'' is found on the coastal plain of Peru.

Behavior

Movement

The nominate subspecies of tawny-throated dotterel breeds in the high Andes and moves to lower elevations after that season. Some move to coastal Chile. Populations in the far south migrate north into Argentina and beyond as far as southern Brazil. ''O. r. pallidus'' appears to be a year-round resident in its limited range.

Feeding

Almost nothing is known about the tawny-throated dotterel's feeding behavior or diet. It is known to feed in flocks of as many as 100 birds in the non-breeding season.

Breeding

The tawny-throated dotterel's nesting season appears to span from June to January with some latitudinal variation. ''O. r. pallidus'' nests on sandy soil near sea level. The species' nest, clutch size, incubation time, and time to fledging are not known.

Vocalization

The tawny-throated dotterel is not highly vocal. In flight it makes "a vibrating drawn-out whistle 'prrrrruu'...and a rhythmic 'chup!-prri-rri-rruu'". Its alarm call is "an emphatic 'chee!-chu-chup'."

Status

The

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

has assessed the tawny-throated dotterel as being of Least Concern. It has a large range, but its estimated population of under 6700 mature individuals is believed to be decreasing. No immediate threats have been identified. It occurs in several protected areas but there is evidence that hunting during fall migration is a potential threat.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q731307 tawny-throated dotterel Birds of the Puna grassland Birds of the Southern Andes Birds of Peru Birds of Argentina Birds of Tierra del Fuego tawny-throated dotterel Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa named by Johann Georg Wagler