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Caspian PLover

Anarhynchus asiaticus

IUCN status: Least concern

 

Identification

Breeding: Male has a white face and belly separated by a broad chestnut patch across the chest. Female is plainer brown, and has a warm rusty-brown patch across the chest. Nonbreeding adults and juveniles are grayish-brown with pale fringes to the feathers of the upperparts, as well as a pale face and belly. 

Confusing Species

Oriental Plover

Also check Siberian, Tibetan and Greater Sand-Plover

 

Distribution

 

Distribution

No ordinary distribution in Australia.

Migratory habits

Migrates south to grasslands of eastern and southern Africa

Breeding

Breeds on steppes and arid regions of Eurasia

Sightings of Caspian Plover in Australia

Location State Sighting period
Lake Finnis NT Oct-94

References

  1. Geering, Andrew, Lindsay Agnew, and Sandra Harding, eds. Shorebirds of Australia. Csiro Publishing, 2007.
  2. BirdLife Australia (2023). Caspian 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/caspian-plover/ Accessed: July 13, 2026 Time Zone: +10:00
  3. Wiersma, P., G. M. Kirwan, and P. F. D. Boesman (2023). Caspian Plover (Anarhynchus asiaticus), 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.casplo1.01.1
  4. 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)
  5. 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.
  6. 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.
  7. https://sproggies63.github.io/birding_apps/