Lapwing
Encyclopedia
Vanellinae are any of various crested plovers, family
Charadriidae
, noted for its slow, irregular wingbeat in flight and a shrill, wailing cry. Its length is 10-16 inches. They are a subfamily of medium-sized wading bird
s which also includes the plover
s and dotterels. The Vanellinae are collectively called lapwings but also contain the ancient Red-kneed Dotterel
. A lapwing can be thought of as a larger plover.
The traditional terms "plover", "lapwing" and "dotterel" were coined long before modern understandings of the relationships between different groups of birds emerged: in consequence, several of the Vanellinae are still often called "plovers", and the reverse also applies, albeit more rarely, to some Charadriinae (the "true" plovers and dotterels).
In Europe, "lapwing" often refers specifically to the Northern Lapwing
, the only member of this group to occur in most of the continent.
While authorities generally agree that there about 25 species of Vanellinae, classifications within the subfamily remain confused. At one extreme, Peters recognised no less than 20 different genera for the birds listed in 2 genera here; other workers have gone so far as to group all the "true" lapwings (except the Red-kneed Dotterel
) into the single genus Vanellus. Current consensus favors a more moderate position, but it is unclear which genera to split. The Handbook of Birds of the World provisionally lumps all Vanellinae into Vanellus except the Red-kneed Dotterel, which is in the monotypic
Erythrogonys. Its plesiomorphic habitus
resembles that of plover
s, but details like the missing hallux
(hind toe) are like those of lapwings: it is still not entirely clear whether it is better considered the basalmost plover or lapwing.
Many coloration details of the Red-kneed Dotterel also occur here and there among the living members of the main lapwing clade
. Its position as the most basal of the living Vanellinae or just immediately outside it thus means that their last common ancestor - or even the last common ancestor of plovers and lapwings - almost certainly was a plover-sized bird with a black crown and breast-band, a white feather patch at the wrist, no hallux, and a lipochromic (probably red) bill with a black tip. Its legs were most likely black or the color of the bill's base.
record of the Vanellinae is scant and mostly recent in origin; no Neogene
lapwings seem to be known. On the other hand, it appears as if early in their evolution
ary history the plovers, lapwings and dotterels must have been almost one and the same, and they are hard to distinguish osteologically even today. Thus, since the Red-kneed Dotterel is so distinct that it might arguably be considered a monotypic
subfamily, reliably dating its divergence from a selection of true lapwings and plovers would also give a good idea of charadriid wader
evolution altogether.
A mid-Oligocene
- c.28 mya (million years ago) - fossil from Rupelmonde
in Belgium
has been assigned to Vanellus, but even if the genus were broadly defined, it is entirely unclear if the placement is correct. Its age ties in with the appearance of the first seemingly distinct Charadriinae at about the same time, and with the presence of more basal Charadriidae a few million years earlier. However, the assignment of fragmentary fossils to Charadriinae or Vanellinae is not easy. Thus, it is very likely that the charadriid waders originate around the Eocene
-Oligocene boundary - roughly 40-30 mya - but nothing more can be said at present. If the Belgian fossil is not a true lapwing, there are actually no Vanellinae fossils known before the Quaternary
.
The Early Oligocene fossil Dolicopterus from Ronzon (France
) may be such an ancestral member of the Charadriidae or even the Vanellinae, but it has not been studied in recent decades and is in dire need of review.
Apart from the prehistoric Vanellus, the extinct lapwing genus Viator has been described from fossils. Its remains were found in the tar pit
s of Talara
in Peru
and it lived in the Late Pleistocene
. Little is known of this rather large lapwing; it may actually belong in Vanellus.
Interestingly, the remaining Charadrii
are highset and/or chunky birds, even decidedly larger than a lot of the scolopacid waders
. The evolutionary trend regarding the Charadriidae - which make up most of the diversity of the Charadrii - thus runs contrary to Cope's Rule
.
Genus Erythrogonys
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Charadriidae
Charadriidae
The bird family Charadriidae includes the plovers, dotterels, and lapwings, about 64 to 66 species in all.- Morphology :They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short, thick necks and long, usually pointed, wings, but most species of lapwing may have more rounded wings...
, noted for its slow, irregular wingbeat in flight and a shrill, wailing cry. Its length is 10-16 inches. They are a subfamily of medium-sized wading bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s which also includes the plover
Plover
Plovers are a widely distributed group of wading birds belonging to the subfamily Charadriinae. There are about 40 species in the subfamily, most of them called "plover" or "dotterel". The closely related lapwing subfamily, Vanellinae, comprises another 20-odd species.Plovers are found throughout...
s and dotterels. The Vanellinae are collectively called lapwings but also contain the ancient Red-kneed Dotterel
Red-kneed Dotterel
The Red-kneed Dotterel is a long-legged, medium-sized plover in a monotypic genus in the subfamily Vanellinae. It is often gregarious and will associate with other waders of its own and different species, even when nesting...
. A lapwing can be thought of as a larger plover.
The traditional terms "plover", "lapwing" and "dotterel" were coined long before modern understandings of the relationships between different groups of birds emerged: in consequence, several of the Vanellinae are still often called "plovers", and the reverse also applies, albeit more rarely, to some Charadriinae (the "true" plovers and dotterels).
In Europe, "lapwing" often refers specifically to the Northern Lapwing
Northern Lapwing
The Northern Lapwing , also known as the Peewit, Green Plover or just Lapwing, is a bird in the plover family. It is common through temperate Eurasia....
, the only member of this group to occur in most of the continent.
Systematics
- For genera sometimes split from VanellusVanellusVanellus is the genus of waders which provisionally contains all lapwings except Red-kneed Dotterel, Erythrogonys cinctus. The name "vanellus" is Latin for "little fan", vanellus being the diminutive of vannus . The name is in reference to the sound lapwings' wings make in...
, see there.
While authorities generally agree that there about 25 species of Vanellinae, classifications within the subfamily remain confused. At one extreme, Peters recognised no less than 20 different genera for the birds listed in 2 genera here; other workers have gone so far as to group all the "true" lapwings (except the Red-kneed Dotterel
Red-kneed Dotterel
The Red-kneed Dotterel is a long-legged, medium-sized plover in a monotypic genus in the subfamily Vanellinae. It is often gregarious and will associate with other waders of its own and different species, even when nesting...
) into the single genus Vanellus. Current consensus favors a more moderate position, but it is unclear which genera to split. The Handbook of Birds of the World provisionally lumps all Vanellinae into Vanellus except the Red-kneed Dotterel, which is in the monotypic
Monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group with only one biological type. The term's usage differs slightly between botany and zoology. The term monotypic has a separate use in conservation biology, monotypic habitat, regarding species habitat conversion eliminating biodiversity and...
Erythrogonys. Its plesiomorphic habitus
Morphology (biology)
In biology, morphology is a branch of bioscience dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features....
resembles that of plover
Plover
Plovers are a widely distributed group of wading birds belonging to the subfamily Charadriinae. There are about 40 species in the subfamily, most of them called "plover" or "dotterel". The closely related lapwing subfamily, Vanellinae, comprises another 20-odd species.Plovers are found throughout...
s, but details like the missing hallux
Hallux
In tetrapods, the hallux is the innermost toe of the foot. Despite its name it may not be the longest toe on the foot of some individuals...
(hind toe) are like those of lapwings: it is still not entirely clear whether it is better considered the basalmost plover or lapwing.
Many coloration details of the Red-kneed Dotterel also occur here and there among the living members of the main lapwing clade
Clade
A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...
. Its position as the most basal of the living Vanellinae or just immediately outside it thus means that their last common ancestor - or even the last common ancestor of plovers and lapwings - almost certainly was a plover-sized bird with a black crown and breast-band, a white feather patch at the wrist, no hallux, and a lipochromic (probably red) bill with a black tip. Its legs were most likely black or the color of the bill's base.
Evolution
The fossilFossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
record of the Vanellinae is scant and mostly recent in origin; no Neogene
Neogene
The Neogene is a geologic period and system in the International Commission on Stratigraphy Geologic Timescale starting 23.03 ± 0.05 million years ago and ending 2.588 million years ago...
lapwings seem to be known. On the other hand, it appears as if early in their evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
ary history the plovers, lapwings and dotterels must have been almost one and the same, and they are hard to distinguish osteologically even today. Thus, since the Red-kneed Dotterel is so distinct that it might arguably be considered a monotypic
Monotypic
In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group with only one biological type. The term's usage differs slightly between botany and zoology. The term monotypic has a separate use in conservation biology, monotypic habitat, regarding species habitat conversion eliminating biodiversity and...
subfamily, reliably dating its divergence from a selection of true lapwings and plovers would also give a good idea of charadriid wader
Charadriidae
The bird family Charadriidae includes the plovers, dotterels, and lapwings, about 64 to 66 species in all.- Morphology :They are small to medium-sized birds with compact bodies, short, thick necks and long, usually pointed, wings, but most species of lapwing may have more rounded wings...
evolution altogether.
A mid-Oligocene
Oligocene
The Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
- c.28 mya (million years ago) - fossil from Rupelmonde
Rupelmonde
Rupelmonde is a town in the municipality of Kruibeke, in the Belgian province of East Flanders. It stands on the bank of the river Schelde opposite the confluence of the eponymous Rupel, and is famed for its sundials as well as having what is probably Belgium's only tidemill...
in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
has been assigned to Vanellus, but even if the genus were broadly defined, it is entirely unclear if the placement is correct. Its age ties in with the appearance of the first seemingly distinct Charadriinae at about the same time, and with the presence of more basal Charadriidae a few million years earlier. However, the assignment of fragmentary fossils to Charadriinae or Vanellinae is not easy. Thus, it is very likely that the charadriid waders originate around the Eocene
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
-Oligocene boundary - roughly 40-30 mya - but nothing more can be said at present. If the Belgian fossil is not a true lapwing, there are actually no Vanellinae fossils known before the Quaternary
Quaternary
The Quaternary Period is the most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the ICS. It follows the Neogene Period, spanning 2.588 ± 0.005 million years ago to the present...
.
The Early Oligocene fossil Dolicopterus from Ronzon (France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) may be such an ancestral member of the Charadriidae or even the Vanellinae, but it has not been studied in recent decades and is in dire need of review.
Apart from the prehistoric Vanellus, the extinct lapwing genus Viator has been described from fossils. Its remains were found in the tar pit
Tar pit
A tar pit, or more accurately known as an asphalt pit or asphalt lake, is a geological occurrence where subterranean bitumen leaks to the surface, creating a large area of natural asphalt.-Known tar pits:...
s of Talara
Talara
Talara is a city in the Talara Province of the Piura Region, in northwestern Peru. It is a port city on the Pacific Ocean with a population of 103,200 as of 2005. Its climate is hot and dry. Due to its oil reserves, and ability to produce aviation fuel, Talara hosted a United States air base during...
in Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
and it lived in the Late Pleistocene
Late Pleistocene
The Late Pleistocene is a stage of the Pleistocene Epoch. The beginning of the stage is defined by the base of the Eemian interglacial phase before the final glacial episode of the Pleistocene 126,000 ± 5,000 years ago. The end of the stage is defined exactly at 10,000 Carbon-14 years BP...
. Little is known of this rather large lapwing; it may actually belong in Vanellus.
Interestingly, the remaining Charadrii
Wader
Waders, called shorebirds in North America , are members of the order Charadriiformes, excluding the more marine web-footed seabird groups. The latter are the skuas , gulls , terns , skimmers , and auks...
are highset and/or chunky birds, even decidedly larger than a lot of the scolopacid waders
Scolopacidae
The sandpipers are a large family, Scolopacidae, of waders or shorebirds. They include many species called sandpipers, as well as those called by names such as curlew and snipe. The majority of these species eat small invertebrates picked out of the mud or soil...
. The evolutionary trend regarding the Charadriidae - which make up most of the diversity of the Charadrii - thus runs contrary to Cope's Rule
Cope's rule
Cope's rule states that population lineages tend to increase in body size over evolutionary time. While the rule has been demonstrated in many instances, it does not hold true at all taxonomic levels, or in all clades...
.
List of species in taxonomic order
Genus VanellusVanellus
Vanellus is the genus of waders which provisionally contains all lapwings except Red-kneed Dotterel, Erythrogonys cinctus. The name "vanellus" is Latin for "little fan", vanellus being the diminutive of vannus . The name is in reference to the sound lapwings' wings make in...
- Northern LapwingNorthern LapwingThe Northern Lapwing , also known as the Peewit, Green Plover or just Lapwing, is a bird in the plover family. It is common through temperate Eurasia....
, Vanellus vanellus - White-headed PloverWhite-headed PloverThe White-headed Lapwing, White-headed Plover or White-crowned Plover is a medium-sized wader, which despite its name is a lapwing rather than a typical plover. It is resident throughout tropical Africa, usually near large rivers.-Description:This lapwing is unmistakable...
, Vanellus albiceps - Southern LapwingSouthern LapwingThe Southern Lapwing is a wader in the family Charadriiformes. It is a common and widespread resident throughout South America, except in densely forested regions , the higher parts of the Andes and the arid coast of a large part of western South America. This bird is particularly common in the...
, Vanellus chilensis - Grey-headed LapwingGrey-headed LapwingThe Grey-headed Lapwing is a lapwing species which breeds in northeast China and Japan. The mainland population winters in northern Southeast Asia from northeastern India to Cambodia...
, Vanellus cinereus - Crowned LapwingCrowned LapwingThe Crowned Lapwing , also known as the Crowned Plover, is a bird of the lapwing subfamily that occurs contiguously from the Red Sea coast of Somalia to southern and southwestern Africa. It is an adaptable and numerous species, with bold and noisy habits...
, Vanellus coronatus - Long-toed LapwingLong-toed LapwingThe Long-toed Lapwing is a species of bird in the Charadriidae family.It is found in Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.-References:*...
, Vanellus crassirostris - River LapwingRiver LapwingThe River Lapwing, Vanellus duvaucelii, is a lapwing species which breeds in Southeast Asia from northeastern India to Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam. It appears to be entirely sedentary...
or Spur-winged Lapwing, Vanellus duvaucelii - Red-wattled LapwingRed-wattled LapwingThe Red-wattled Lapwing is a lapwing or large plover, a wader in the family Charadriidae. It has characteristic loud alarm calls which are variously rendered as did he do it or pity to do it leading to colloquial names like the did-he-do-it bird...
, Vanellus indicus - Masked LapwingMasked LapwingThe Masked Lapwing , previously known as the Masked Plover and often called the Spur-winged Plover or just Plover in its native range, is a large, common and conspicuous bird native to Australia, particularly the northern and eastern parts of the continent...
, Vanellus miles - Spur-winged Lapwing or Spur-winged Plover, Vanellus spinosus
- Banded LapwingBanded LapwingThe Banded Lapwing is a small to medium sized wader which belongs to the plover family. It is found over most of Australia and Tasmania though is absent from the northern third of the continent....
, Vanellus tricolor - Blacksmith LapwingBlacksmith LapwingThe Blacksmith Lapwing or Blacksmith Plover occurs commonly from Kenya through central Tanzania to southern and southwestern Africa...
, Vanellus armatus - Black-headed LapwingBlack-headed LapwingThe Black-headed Plover or Black-headed Lapwing is a large lapwing, a group of largish waders in the family Charadriidae. It is a resident breeder across sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal to Ethiopia, although it has seasonal movements. It lays two or three eggs on a ground scrape.These are...
, Vanellus tectus - Yellow-wattled LapwingYellow-wattled LapwingThe Yellow-wattled Lapwing, Vanellus malabaricus, is a lapwing, a group of medium sized waders in the family Charadriidae. It is a non-migratory breeder restricted to the Indian Subcontinent and is found on the dry plains. Although they do not migrate, they are known to make seasonal movements in...
, Vanellus malabaricus - Senegal LapwingSenegal LapwingThe Senegal Lapwing or Lesser Black-winged Lapwing is a species of bird in the Charadriidae family.It is found in Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Nigeria,...
, Vanellus lugubris - Black-winged LapwingBlack-winged LapwingThe Black-winged Lapwing is an east African species that is found from the Ethiopian highlands in the north to central Kenya , and again at middle to coastal elevations in eastern South Africa . It is a habitat specialist of short grass in well-watered temperate grasslands...
, Vanellus melanopterus - African Wattled Lapwing, Vanellus senegallus
- Spot-breasted LapwingSpot-breasted LapwingThe Spot-breasted Lapwing is a species of bird in the Charadriidae family. It is endemic to the Ethiopian highlands.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 24 July 2007....
, Vanellus melanocephalus - Brown-chested LapwingBrown-chested LapwingThe Brown-chested Lapwing is a species of bird in the Charadriidae family.It is found in Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritania, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, and Zambia.It is a carnivorous bird...
, Vanellus superciliosus - Javanese Wattled Lapwing, Vanellus macropterus
- Sociable LapwingSociable LapwingThe Sociable Lapwing or Sociable Plover is a wader in the lapwing family of birds.It breeds on open grassland in Russia and Kazakhstan. Three to five eggs are laid in a ground nest...
, Vanellus gregarius - White-tailed LapwingWhite-tailed LapwingThe White-tailed Lapwing or White-tailed Plover is a wader in the lapwing genus.It breeds semi-colonially on inland marshes in Iraq, Iran and southern Russia. Four eggs are laid in a ground nest. The Iraqi and Iranian breeders are mainly residents, but Russian birds migrate south in winter to...
, Vanellus leucurus - Pied LapwingPied LapwingThe Pied Plover , also known as the Pied Lapwing, is a species of bird in the Charadriidae family.-Distribution and habitat:...
, Vanellus cayanus - Andean LapwingAndean LapwingThe Andean Lapwing is a species of bird in the Charadriidae family.It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru....
, Vanellus resplendens
Genus Erythrogonys
- Red-kneed DotterelRed-kneed DotterelThe Red-kneed Dotterel is a long-legged, medium-sized plover in a monotypic genus in the subfamily Vanellinae. It is often gregarious and will associate with other waders of its own and different species, even when nesting...
, Erythrogonys cinctus
External links
- Lapwing videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- Lapwing Hatchlings video From Gallery of Living Nature.