Greater Sand Plover
Photo © Afsar Nayakkan
Photo © Afsar Nayakkan — CC BY 4.0 — Source: iNaturalist #149460428The greater sand plover (Anarhynchus leschenaultii) is a small wader in the plover family of birds. The spelling is often given as "greater sandplover" or "greater sand-plover", but the official IOC and British Ornithologists' Union spelling is "Greater Sand Plover". The specific leschenaultii commemorates the French botanist Jean Baptiste Leschenault de la Tour. Like most other species in the genus Anarhynchus, it was until recently included in the genus Charadrius. == Distribution == It breeds in the semi-deserts of Turkey and eastwards through Central Asia, where it nests in a bare ground scrape. This species is strongly migratory, wintering on sandy beaches in East Africa, South Asia and Australasia. It is a rare vagrant in western Europe, where it has been recorded as far west as Iceland. It has been recorded three times in North America, the most recent being on 13 April 2025 in Biscay Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador. Last previous sighing in NA,14 May 2009 in Jacksonville, Florida. == Subspecies == There are three subspecies: A. l. leschenaultii, the nominate, in the east of the species' range in Mongolia and NW China. Bill intermediate; summer plumage with a weak orange breast band. A. l. scythicus, in the centre…
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