View source for European golden plover

{{short description|Species of bird}}
{{speciesbox
| image = {{CSS image crop
|Image         = European golden plover (Pluvialis apricaria) female breeding Keflavik.jpg
|bSize         = 400
|cWidth        = 220
|cHeight       = 250
|oTop          = 10
|oLeft         = 120
}}
| image_caption = Adult female in breeding plumage, Iceland
| image2 = Pluvialis apricaria - European Golden Plover XC132878.ogg
|image2_caption = Calls
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 12 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2016 |title=''Pluvialis apricaria'' |volume=2016 |article-number=e.T22693727A86551440 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22693727A86551440.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}</ref>
| genus = Pluvialis
| species = apricaria
| authority = ([[Carl Linnaeus|Linnaeus]], [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|1758]])
| synonyms = *''Charadrius apricarius'' {{small|Linnaeus,&nbsp;1758}}
*''Charadrius pluvialis'' {{small|Linnaeus,&nbsp;1758}}
| range_map = Pluvialis apricaria map.svg
}}

The '''European golden plover''' ('''''Pluvialis apricaria'''''), also known as the '''Eurasian golden plover''', or just the '''golden plover''' within Europe, is a relatively large species of [[plover]]. This species is similar to two other golden plovers, the [[American golden plover]], ''Pluvialis dominica'', and [[Pacific golden plover]], ''Pluvialis fulva'', which are both slightly smaller, slimmer and longer-legged than European golden plover, and both have grey rather than white axillary (armpit) feathers (visible in flight, and when the bird stretches its wings on the ground).

==Taxonomy==
The European golden plover was [[Species description|formally described]] by the Swedish naturalist [[Carl Linnaeus]] in 1758 in the [[10th edition of Systema Naturae|tenth edition]] of his ''[[Systema Naturae]]''. He placed it with the other plovers in the genus ''[[Charadrius]]'' and coined the [[binomial name]] ''Charadrius apricarius''.<ref>{{cite book | last=Linnaeus | first=Carl | author-link=Carl Linnaeus | year=1758 | title= Systema Naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis | volume=1 | edition=10th | pages=150–151 | publisher=Laurentii Salvii | location=Holmiae (Stockholm) | language=Latin | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/727057 }}</ref> The species is now placed in the [[genus]] ''[[Pluvialis]]'' that was introduced in 1760 by the French zoologist  [[Mathurin Jacques Brisson]].<ref>{{ cite book | last=Brisson | first=Mathurin Jacques | author-link=Mathurin Jacques Brisson | year=1760 | title=Ornithologie, ou, Méthode Contenant la Division des Oiseaux en Ordres, Sections, Genres, Especes & leurs Variétés | language=French, Latin | at=[https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/36010444 Vol. 1, p. 46], [https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/36294254 Vol. 5, p. 42] | place=Paris | publisher=Jean-Baptiste Bauche }}</ref><ref name=ioc>{{cite web| editor1-last=Gill | editor1-first=Frank | editor1-link=Frank Gill (ornithologist) | editor2-last=Donsker | editor2-first=David | editor3-last=Rasmussen | editor3-first=Pamela | editor3-link=Pamela Rasmussen | date=July 2021 | title=Buttonquail, thick-knees, sheathbills, plovers, oystercatchers, stilts, painted-snipes, jacanas, Plains-wanderer, seedsnipes | work=IOC World Bird List Version 11.2 | url=https://www.worldbirdnames.org/bow/buttonquail/ | publisher=International Ornithologists' Union | access-date=15 January 2022}}</ref> The genus name is [[Latin]] and means "relating to rain", from ''pluvia'', "rain".  It was believed that golden plovers flocked when rain was imminent.<ref>{{Cite CiteSeerX|citeseerx = 10.1.1.695.7104|title = London}}</ref>  The species name '' apricaria'' is Latin and means "to bask in the sun".<ref name=job>{{cite book | last= Jobling | first= James A. | year= 2010| title= The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names | url= https://archive.org/details/Helm_Dictionary_of_Scientific_Bird_Names_by_James_A._Jobling | publisher=Christopher Helm | location = London | isbn = 978-1-4081-2501-4 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/Helm_Dictionary_of_Scientific_Bird_Names_by_James_A._Jobling/page/n57 57], 311}}</ref> The European golden plover is [[monotypic]]: no [[subspecies]] are recognised.<ref name=ioc/>

==Description==
The European golden plover is quite thickset, with its wings only being slightly longer than its tail. Its most distinct feature is a white "s"-shaped band stretching from its [[Glossary of bird terms#forehead|forehead]] to its [[Glossary of bird terms#flank|flanks]].<ref name=europe>{{cite book |title= Birds of Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East: A Photographic Guide |author=Frédéric Jiguet |author2=Aurélien Audevard |edition= illustrated|publisher= Princeton University Press |year= 2017 |isbn= 978-0-691-17243-9 |page= 155}}</ref>

==Distribution and habitat==
The European golden plover tends to breed in the [[Arctic tundra]] and other [[moorland]] areas, ranging as far west as [[Iceland]], where they are called Heiðlóa, and as far east as [[central Siberia]]; the southernmost breed in [[Wales]] and [[Belarus]], after a small breeding population on [[Dartmoor]] in southwest England became extinct in about 2010.<ref name=europe /><ref name="bto">{{cite book |first1=D.&nbsp;E. |last1=Balmer |first2=S. |last2=Gillings |first3=B.&nbsp;J. |last3=Caffrey |first4=R.&nbsp;L. |last4=Swann |first5=I.&nbsp;S. |last5=Downie |first6=R.&nbsp;J. |last6=Fuller |title=Bird Atlas 2007–11: the breeding and wintering birds of Britain and Ireland |publisher=BTO Books |date=2013 |location=Thetford |isbn=978-1-908581-28-0}}</ref><ref name=EBBA2>{{Cite book | last=Pearce-Higgins | first=James | editor1-last=Keller | editor1-first=Verena | display-editors=etal | date=2020 | title=European Breeding Bird Atlas 2: Distribution, Abundance and Change | location=Barcelona | publisher=European Bird Census Council and Lynx Edicions  | isbn=978-84-16728-38-1 | page=308}}</ref>

In winter, it migrates southwest to milder regions of Europe, northwest Africa, and southwest Asia, from [[Ireland]] east to [[Denmark]], and south to the [[Mediterranean region]] as far as [[Algeria]], northern Egypt, and the [[Caspian Sea]] coast of [[Iran]]. It tends to gather in large flocks in open areas such as agricultural plains, ploughed land, and short meadows, ranging from lowland plains to subarctic plateaus, typically in flat terrain with moderate vegetation near wetlands.<ref name=handbook>{{cite book |title= The Handbook of Bird Identification: For Europe and the Western Palearctic |author= Mark Beaman, Steve Madge |edition= illustrated |publisher= A&C Black |year= 2010 |isbn= 978-1-4081-3523-5 |page= 309}}</ref><ref name=national>{{cite book |title= National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America, National Geographic Field Guide to Birds Series |editor= Jon Lloyd Dunn, Jonathan K. Alderfer |edition= illustrated |publisher= National Geographic Books |year= 2006 |isbn= 978-0-7922-5314-3 |page= 154}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Méndez |first1=Verónica |last2=Guðmundsson |first2=Guðmundur A. |last3=Skarphéðinsson |first3=Kristinn H. |last4=Katrínardóttir |first4=Borgný |last5=Auhage |first5=Svenja |last6=Þórisson |first6=Böðvar |last7=Ö. Snæþórsson |first7=Aðalsteinn |last8=Kolbeinsson |first8=Yann |last9=Þórarinsson |first9=Þorkell L. |last10=Stefánsson |first10=Halldór W. |last11=Helgason |first11=Hálfdán H. |last12=Þórarinsdóttir |first12=Rán |last13=Þórisson |first13=Skarphéðinn G. |last14=Gallo |first14=Cristian |last15=Alves |first15=José A. |title=Predicting the breeding distribution of wader species across climatic and environmental gradients |journal=Wildlife Biology |date=2025 |language=en |volume=n/a |issue=n/a |article-number=e01493 |doi=10.1002/wlb3.01493 |issn=1903-220X|doi-access=free }}</ref> Vagrants have been recorded west to the east coast of [[Canada]] (Newfoundland, Nova Scotia), south to [[Gambia]], and east to [[Pakistan]] and northern [[India]].<ref name=Hayman>{{cite book |title=Shorebirds |first1=Peter |last1=Hayman |first2=John |last2=Marchant |first3=Tony |last3=Prater |year=1986 |publisher=Croom Helm |location=Breckenham, UK |isbn=0-7099-2034-2}}</ref>

==Behaviour and ecology==
{{listen |filename= Pluvialis apricaria - European Golden Plover XC132878.ogg|title= European golden plover call}}
The European golden plover's call is a [[monosyllabic]], slightly descending, [[Depression (mood)|melancholic]] "tuu".<ref name=europe /><ref name=national />

Its flight action is rapid and powerful, with regular wingbeats.<ref name=handbook />

In the [[United Kingdom]], golden plover chicks rely on [[Tipulidae|craneflies]] for feeding, while in [[Sweden]] [[Bibionidae|march flies]] are more important.<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Machín, P.|author2=Fernández-Elipe, J. | author3=Flinks, H. |author4=Laso, M. | author5=Aguirre, J. I. |author6=Klaassen, R. H. G. | year=2017| title=Habitat selection, diet and food availability of European Golden Plover ''Pluvialis apricaria'' chicks in Swedish Lapland| journal=Ibis| volume=159| pages=657–672| doi=10.1111/ibi.12479 | issue=3| doi-access=free| url=https://pure.rug.nl/ws/files/97634053/Mach_n_et_al_2017_Ibis.pdf}}</ref>

==Status==
The European golden plover is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds ([[AEWA]]) applies.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://beautyofbirds.com/eurasian-golden-plovers/|title=Eurasian Golden Plovers|date=16 September 2021|access-date=4 January 2023|website=beautyofbirds.com}}</ref> Overall, the species is secure, being listed by [[IUCN]] as Least Concern, but populations on the southern fringe of the breeding range are declining or extinct in several countries, including Britain,<ref name="bto"/> Denmark (extinct as a breeding bird), Belgium (extinct as a breeding bird), Poland (extinct as a breeding bird), Germany, and southern Sweden.<ref name="DOF">{{cite web |last1=DOF Birdlife |title=Danmarks Fugle - Hjejle |url=https://dofbasen.dk/danmarksfugle/art/04850 |website=Fakta om Fugle |publisher=Dansk Ornitologisk Forening |access-date=25 July 2024 |language=Danish}}</ref><ref name=EBBA2/> It is most abundant in [[Iceland]], which holds about a third of the global population.<ref name=EBBA2/>

==In culture==
===Folklore===
The European golden plover spends summers in Iceland, and in [[Icelandic folklore]], the appearance of the first plover in the country means that spring has arrived.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.icenews.is/2017/03/27/the-golden-plover-has-arrived-indicating-spring-in-iceland/#axzz4caJPwfcl|title= The Golden Plover has arrived, indicating spring in Iceland|last= Jóhannsson|first= K.|date= 27 March 2017|website= icenews.is|publisher= Icenews|access-date= 5 October 2017}}</ref> The Icelandic media always covers the first plover sighting, which in 2017, took place on 27 March,<ref>{{cite web |url= http://icelandmonitor.mbl.is/news/news/2017/03/27/spring_has_arrived_in_iceland_according_to_folklore/|title= Spring has arrived in Iceland, according to folklore|author= <!--Not stated--> |date= 27 March 2017|website= icelandmonitor.mbl.is|publisher= Iceland Monitor|access-date=5 October 2017}}</ref> and in 2020, on 16 March.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://grapevine.is/news/2020/03/16/rejoice-spring-has-finally-sprung-the-loa-lands-in-iceland/|title= Rejoice, Spring Has Finally Sprung: The Lóa Lands In Iceland|author= Poppy Askham  |date= 16 March 2020|website= grapevine.is|publisher= The Reykjavik Grapevine|access-date=10 April 2020}}</ref> The plover is also a symbol of femininity and womanhood in Iceland.<ref>{{cite AV media |people=Gísli Marteinn Baldursson |date=7 March 2025 |title=Vikan með Gísla Marteini |url=https://www.ruv.is/sjonvarp/spila/vikan-med-gisla-marteini/37026/b13e1l |trans-title=The Week with Gísli Marteinn |lang=is |location=Reykjavík, Iceland |publisher=[[RÚV]] |access-date=15 April 2025|type=television production|time=19:39|quote=Hvað þýðir það að kona taki við? Muntu... þú veist... ég er að hugsa um hluti eins og að mála Valhöll bleika, eða breyta fálkanum yfir í lóu, eða...|trans-quote=What does it mean that a woman is taking over? ... I'm thinking of things like painting the party's headquarters pink, or changing the falcon into a plover, or...}}</ref>

===Origin of Guinness World Records===
On 10 November 1951, Sir [[Hugh Beaver]], then the managing director of the [[Guinness]] Breweries,<ref name=guinness/> went on a shooting party in the [[North Slob]], by the [[River Slaney]] in [[County Wexford]], Ireland. After missing a shot at a Eurasian golden plover, he became involved in an argument over which was the fastest [[Game (food)|game bird]] in Europe, the [[Eurasian golden plover|golden plover]] or the [[red grouse]] (the former being correct).<ref name=Davenport2010/> That evening at [[Castlebridge]] House, he realised that it was impossible to confirm in reference books whether or not the golden plover was Europe's fastest game bird.<ref name=guinness2/><ref name=Cavendish2005/> Beaver knew that there must be numerous other questions debated nightly in pubs throughout Ireland, but there was no book in the world with which to settle arguments about records. He realised then that a book supplying the answers to this sort of question might prove popular.<ref name=Guinness50th/> A Guinness employee told Sir Hugh of two twin brothers, [[Norris McWhirter|Norris]] and [[Ross McWhirter]], who had opened a fact checking agency in London.  Sir Hugh interviewed the brothers and, impressed by their prodigious knowledge, commissioned the book. Later, he published the first [[Guinness World Records]] which became a best seller within months.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p030890m|title=The Guinness Book of Records, Witness - BBC World Service}}</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Lóuungi 080.jpg|Golden plover chick in Iceland
Pluvialis apricaria Norfolk 1.jpg|Winter plumage; November, [[Norfolk]], UK
Chorlitejos dorados en vuelo - Eurasian golden plover - Pluvialis apricaria.jpg|Group in flight, showing the white axillary feathering; December, Delta del Llobregat, [[Barcelona]], [[Spain]]
Ljungpipare (Pluvialis apricaria) - Ystad-2020.jpg| A large flock in [[Ystad]], [[Sweden]].
Pluvialis apricaria photo.jpg|In [[Iceland]].
Pluvialis apricaria MWNH 0292.JPG|Eggs, Collection [[Museum Wiesbaden]].
</gallery>


==References==
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name=Cavendish2005>{{cite journal |title=The Guinness Book of Records was first published on August 27th, 1955 |first=Richard |last=Cavendish |journal=[[History Today]] |volume=55 |issue=8 |date=August 2005 |url=http://www.historytoday.com/richard-cavendish/publication-guinness-book-world-records}}</ref>

<ref name=Davenport2010>{{cite book |first=Fionn |last=Davenport |title=Ireland |year=2010 |page=193 |isbn=978-1-74220-350-8 |publisher=Lonely Planet |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RfL3QnPMi9oC&pg=PA193}}</ref>

<ref name=guinness>{{cite web |url=http://guinness.book-of-records.info/history.html |title=The History of the Book |work=Guinness Record Book Collecting |access-date=10 February 2012}}</ref>

<ref name=guinness2>{{cite web|url=http://freespace.virgin.net/james.robertson/history2.htm |title=Early history of Guinness World Records |page=2 |year=2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070701200438/http://freespace.virgin.net/james.robertson/history2.htm |archive-date=July 1, 2007 }}</ref>

<ref name=Guinness50th>{{cite book |title=Guinness World Records 2005 |url=https://archive.org/details/guinnessworldr2005guin |url-access=registration |year=2004 |page=[https://archive.org/details/guinnessworldr2005guin/page/n7 6] |isbn=978-1-892051-22-6 |publisher=Guinness |edition=50th Anniversary}}</ref>
}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Pluvialis apricaria}}
{{Wikispecies|Pluvialis apricaria}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20141202063227/http://aulaenred.ibercaja.es/wp-content/uploads/177_GoldenPloverPapricaria.pdf Ageing and sexing (PDF; 1.4 MB) by Javier Blasco-Zumeta & Gerd-Michael Heinze]
* {{BirdLife|22693727|Pluvialis apricaria}}
* {{Avibase|name=Pluvialis apricaria}}
* {{InternetBirdCollection|eurasian-golden-plover-pluvialis-apricaria|Eurasian Golden Plover}}
* {{VIREO|European+golden-plover|European Golden-Plover}}
* {{IUCN_Map|22693727/166262122|Pluvialis apricaria}}
* {{Xeno-canto species|Pluvialis|apricaria|European golden plover}}
* {{field guide birds of the world|Pluvialis apricaria}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q21148}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Pluvialis|European golden plover]]
[[Category:Birds of Europe]]
[[Category:Birds of Iceland]]
[[Category:Birds of Scandinavia]]
[[Category:Birds of Russia]]
[[Category:Birds described in 1758|European golden plover]]
[[Category:Animal taxa named by Carl Linnaeus]]