Crab-Plover

Scientific name:

Dromas ardeola

(Paykul 1805 ‘Dromas Ardeola’)
Dromas – Greek; dromas running.
ardeola – Latin; ardeola or adiola little heron, diminutive form of ardea heron.

Crab-Plover Fact File

Distribution: Breeding range is around the Arabian Peninsula on the Red Sea, Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf coasts. Non breeding birds occur south along the African coast and Madagascar, with a few reaching as far as South Africa, and east to southern India, Indian Ocean islands and at one site in south-west Thailand.

Conservation Status: Least Concern – although there are only fifteen known breeding sites for this species making them vulnerable to oil pollution and habitat destruction. This species is showing an increrase in its population and the survival rate of juveniles is 87%.

Subspecies: None – Monotypic

Further Reading:

Single Species wader Families

Single species wader families – read