Paranoid Plovers: Lapwings from India

Lapwings are a part of the plover clan and amongst the largest in size (27-33 cm). They are ground-dwelling shorebirds that like running around in spurts and picking up titbits. Of the seven species of lapwings found in India, three are resident, and the others are winter migrants. The residents make all the noise, while the visitors maintain a polite silence during their stay from September to March. 

If there is one bird that birders and bird photographers would rather not encounter during their perambulations around a lake, jheel or open country, it must be the red-wattled lapwing (Vanellus indicus). This handsome, bronze, black-and-white bird (about 33 cm) with a large, crimson wattle (hanging skin) in front of each glistening eye will spot you from afar. And especially in its breeding season (March to September), it will rise from the earth with its partner, screaming blue murder in an all-too-familiar “did-ye-do-it, did-ye-do-it?” shrill accusation. The pair will flutter around your head, even dive-bombing you, instantly making you aware that a nest or chicks must be nearby; exactly what the bird is trying to keep you away from! If it kept quiet, you would be none the wiser because the “nest” is a mere scrape in the ground, maybe ringed with pebbles or bits of dung, and the brown splotched peg-shaped eggs (usually four) are beautifully camouflaged. Sometimes, the parent bird will pull the familiar “broken wing” stunt to lure you (or stray dogs) away from its nest or babies.

The residents 

I once came across what appeared to be a six-legged lapwing: it would spurt (on all six legs) ahead a short distance and then sit down. After it had moved away some distance, I saw it stand up, and from under the bird, two salt-and-pepper chicks emerged and began foraging.

The red-wattled lapwing is found all over India, usually near waterbodies. It has the typical stop-and-start manner of running, bending forward to pick up insects, molluscs, etc., from the ground. Like many of its clan, it flies in a rather heavy-handed, clumsy manner and is quite happy to do so (and scream, too) in the middle of the night.

The yellow-wattled lapwing (Vanellus malabaricus) at 27 cm is smaller than the red-wattled lapwing — a dusky, beige, brown, black, and white bird. It wears a black skullcap and sports yellow wattles at the base of its beak. It has long, yellow legs. It prefers drier habitats — vacant land, fallow fields, and the like. It is an all-India resident that is much quieter than its cousin, the red-wattled lapwing, though it too will dive-bomb you or call you out (a plaintive “tee-ee, tee-ee” ending with a shrill “twit-twit-twit”) if you approach too close to its nest.

The river lapwing (Vanellus spinosus), earlier known as the spur-winged plover (33 cm), is handsome in ash-grey, black (face, wings, and tail) and white, a resident of north and east India, living on shingle and sandy beaches alongside flowing rivers and streams. In stature, they are somewhat like red-wattled lapwings but seem to have the hint of a crest. I have seen them in pairs and small parties several times, posed Napoleonically-hunched along the banks of the Yamuna River near my home, and have wondered what the heck they found so appetising in the filthy water. They feed on insects, tadpoles, molluscs, frogs, and worms. They have a sharp spur on their wings, whose purpose (defence or offence) remains unknown. Their war cry is a sharp, insistent “did-did-did”. Like other resident lapwings, they nest in the ground in summer on shingle or sandy banks, their eggs laid right out in the open, well camouflaged but otherwise unprotected.

The migrants

Of the lapwing visitors, the northern lapwing (Vanellus vanellus), aka the peewit or green lapwing, has got to be the most handsome. With a face made up in black and white, it invariably reminds me of a Kathakali dancer. It wears a snazzy swept-back black crest, its back and mantle are dark iridescent green, its chest black, and belly white.

This visitor to the northern and eastern parts of the country keeps in small parties and scrabbles around for titbits, running in small mincing steps without flexing its legs. It frequents soggy fields, often in the proximity of cattle, and will gather in large numbers prior to migrating back to Europe, where it breeds. While very well-mannered as a visitor, it is known to create as much of a ruckus as our red-wattled lapwing does while nesting.

In winter, the sociable lapwing (Vanellus gregarious; 33 cm) is dressed in ashy grey-brown, a dark cap, and a white eyebrow (supercilium). A visitor to the north and northwestern parts of India and the peninsula (right down to Kerala), this lapwing prefers drier ground — ploughed fields, stubble, etc. — and keeps in flocks of 20-100.

The grey-headed lapwing (Vanellus cinereus) at 37 cm has a bluish-grey head and chin, scalloped beige body, a white belly separated from the chin by a black band, long yellow legs, and a black-tipped yellow bill. A visitor from China, it spends the winter in eastern India (Bengal seems to be a favourite) and parts of northern India. It forages for molluscs, insects, and the like in small parties in marshy areas, riverbanks, and dank grazing grounds.

Another visitor to north and northwest India is the tall (28 cm) white-tailed lapwing (Vanellus leucurus). It is sandy brown with a grey chest and white belly, and not unlike the yellow-wattled lapwing, except it does not have a black cap. Also, it prefers wetter habitats, foraging in small groups of up to 25 birds before congregating in larger numbers before flying back to its breeding grounds. Salim Ali has mentioned that while standing still in a marsh, a single bird might — quickly followed by another and then another — raise both its wings vertically above its head, back-to-back, “flag raising”, probably as a form of signalling. A sight worth witnessing!

While birders may not take much notice of lapwings, at least the red-wattled lapwing certainly takes note of birders and, like a town-crier of bygone times, warns everyone of unwelcome voyeurs in the vicinity!