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Little Ringed Plover

Thinornis dubius

IUCN status: Least concern

 

Identification

Delicately built small plover with bright yellow eyerings. Dull pinkish legs and large white forehead patch.

Confusing Species

Ringed Plover

Semi-palmated Plover

 

 

Distribution

 

Distribution

No ordinary distribution in Australia.

Migratory habits

Migrates south to Africa, India and SE Asia.

Breeding

Breeds in far north of North America and in Siberia.

Recent Sightings of Little Ringed Plover in Australia

Location State Sighting period
Gracemere Lagoon  QLD 11/10/2003
Rottnest Island  WA 21/11/1999
Broome  WA 29/08/1998
Lake Bibra  WA 30/12/1998
Darwin  NT 8/10/1998
Broome  WA 24/08/1998
Tinnaroo Dam  QLD Oct-97
Fitzroy Crossing WA 10/01/1992

References

  1. Geering, Andrew, Lindsay Agnew, and Sandra Harding, eds. Shorebirds of Australia. Csiro Publishing, 2007.
  2. eBird. 2021. eBird: An online database of bird distribution and abundance [web application]. eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Available:  http://www.ebird.org (Accessed: Date 12/4/2026)
  3. Rogers A, Fuller RA & Amano T (2023) Australia’s migratory shorebirds: Trends and prospects. Report to the National Environmental Science Program. University of Queensland, Brisbane.
  4. Driessen, J., Kidd, L. R., Weller, D. R., Purnell, C., Maguire, G., Jaensch, R., and LeClair, S. M. (2025). Australian National Directory of Important Migratory Shorebird Habitat. Report for the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. BirdLife Australia, Melbourne.
  5. https://sproggies63.github.io/birding_apps/
  6. Wiersma, P., G. M. Kirwan, D. A. Christie, and P. F. D. Boesman (2024). Little Ringed Plover (Thinornis dubius), version 1.1. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.lirplo.01.1