File:White-tailed_lapwing_(Vanellus_leucurus).jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
Species
Least Concernwhite-tailed lapwing
Species
- PhylumChordata
- ClassAves
- OrderCharadriiformes
- FamilyCharadriidae
Habitatbrackish, freshwater
via IUCN
~2 min read
Encyclopedic overview
The white-tailed lapwing or white-tailed plover (Vanellus leucurus) is a wader in the lapwing genus. The genus name Vanellus is Medieval Latin for a lapwing and derives from vannus a winnowing fan. The specific leucurus is from Ancient Greek leukouros, "white-tailed".
This medium-sized lapwing is long-legged and fairly long-billed. It is the only lapwing likely to be seen in other than very shallow water, where it picks insects and other small prey mainly from the surface.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “White-tailed Lapwing” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.