Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Two Years On......Banded Lapwing

It seems incredible to me, that it's taken 2 years to finally photograph a Banded Lapwing. This species was once to be found widely around the South of Tasmania, being commonly seen at such venues as Sandford, South Arm, Richmond and Sorell. In recent years, I've seen a few around Bridgewater and heard the odd bird around Barilla Bay, but they're a bit thin on the ground. I could speculate on the reasons, but it's seems most likely to be related to drought conditions and changes in land use.
I found a pair this morning at Kellevie, just to the East of Copping, with a single, half grown runner. It's a fairly late date to find them with young, often nesting as early as June, and as they usually have a clutch of 3 or 4 eggs, this runner is presumably the sole survivor. Much of this area is now improved and irrigated pasture, not the sort of habitat I associate with Banded Lapwing.
I have rather missed seeing these plovers, as they're one of my favourites. My son and I used to call them "bandits", because of their likeness to the old cartoon drawings of masked intruders!

2 comments:

  1. Anonymous9:21 am

    Hi Alan,
    Maybe they should be re-named "Bandit Lapwings"!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi John,
    Well in fact I erred, my memory isn't what I thought it was!! We did indeed call them "Bandits"

    ReplyDelete