Pacific Golden Plover
Pluvialis fulva
IUCN status: Least Concern
Flyway population 150 000 (2022 estimate)
Australian population 9000
Pacific Golden Plover. Lord Howe Island. Robert Bush.
Identification
Medium-sized golden-speckled Plover.
Plumage
Non-breeding:
Crown and nape brown streaked with yellow. The supercilium, lores and ear coverts are golden. The rest of the upperparts are speckled golden-yellow caused by the brown feathers having a golden edge and notching. The underparts are generally cream with streaks and blotches of golden brown throughout. The vent is white. The short bill is black, with a slight bulge at the tip. The legs are also black.
Breeding: The upperparts are similar to the non-breeding plumage but has a greater brightness of the golden-yellow and the brown is black. The forehead, supercilium, the sides of the neck and breast are white, whilst the lores, chin, breast and belly are black, giving a strong contrast between the two. The flanks and vent are white with black blotches.
Juvenile: Similar to the adult non-breeding plumage but paler and greyer with heavy streaking and blotches.
Confusing Species
Grey Plover: Larger bird, but the mottled plumage might be confusing at a distance.
Distribution
Breeds in well drained tundra of Siberia and Alaska. Migrates to north-east Africa, India, south-east Asia and Australasia.
In Australia, can be found on intertidal sand and mudflats, salt-marshhes and rocky shores.
Monthly reports of Pacific Golden Plover in Queensland
Best sites in Queensland to see Pacific Golden Plover
International and Nationally Important sites in Queensland
| Significant Bird Area | Year | Peak Count | International | National |
| Moreton Bay | 2020 | 1219 | No | Yes |
| Mackay | 2014 | 468 | No | Yes |
| Alva Beach | 2022 | 424 | No | Yes |
| Bowling Green Bay | 2013 | 410 | No | Yes |
| Taylor’s Beach | 2021 | 236 | No | Yes |
| Skyring Estuary | 2012 | 216 | No | Yes |
| Great Sandy Strait | 2018 | 175 | No | Yes |
| Mapoon | 2015 | 172 | No | Yes |
Conservation
EPBC listing: Marine, Migratory – not listed as threatened
References
- BirdLife Australia (2023). Pacific Golden Plover. [Text before updates sourced from: Marchant, S. et al (eds) 1990-2006 Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds.Volume 1 to 7.] Birdlife Australia. Birdlife Australia. Source: https://hanzab.birdlife.org.au/species/pacific-golden-plover/ Accessed: April 30, 2026 Time Zone: +10:00
- Johnson, O. W., P. G. Connors, and P. Pyle (2024). Pacific Golden-Plover (Pluvialis fulva), version 2.0. In Birds of the World (B. K. Keeney, P. G. Rodewald, and S. M. Billerman, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.pagplo.02
- 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)
- 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.
- 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.
- van Swinderen, L., Hansen, B.D., Fuller, R.A., Watkins, D., Rogers, D.I., Clemens, R.S., Newman, M., Woehler, E.J., Weller, D.R. and LeClair, S. (2025). Revision of the East Asian – Australasian Flyway Population Estimates for 37 listed Migratory Shorebird Species. Report for the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. BirdLife Australia, Melbourne.
- Geering, Andrew, Lindsay Agnew, and Sandra Harding, eds. Shorebirds of Australia. Csiro Publishing, 2007.
- https://sproggies63.github.io/birding_apps/