Birds of Ireland: Lapwing
Male and female lapwings look quite similar to each other. They are smaller than oystercatchers and have a more upright posture.
Lapwing are around 28-31 cm long with a wingspan of 70-76cm.
They are typically seen here on estuaries, farmland and wetlands in autumn, winter, and spring but are a scarce breeding species.
Lapwings are smaller than oystercatchers — they have an upright posture and both sexes look similar. Lapwing of all ages have a thin crest on top of their head and this is longer on males.
They have glossy iridescent black backs and wings with small white patches on their outer four primaries; they have orange-brown vent/undertail coverts, a white belly, black breast with complex black-and-white face patterns.
Their white tail has a black centre, they have a short straight black beak, and long pink-red legs.
Recently fledged birds have a very short crest with pale edgings to their back feathers.
In flight lapwing's broad, rounded dark wings with white tips are visible. They have a floppy wingbeat and sometimes fly in large flocks.
The call of a lapwing is unmistakable — an eerie squeaky , like a squeaky rubber duck. Their song is similar but more elaborate.
* The northern lapwing (Vanellus vanellus) was declared Ireland's national bird by a committee of the Irish Wildlife Conservancy in 1990.
Some birds can be leucistic or albino — conditions which result in parts or all of the bird's feathers being washed-out looking or white.
This is most noticeable on birds with dark plumage. Also, as feathers get old their colour can fade or change. These plumage variations might make it hard to identify a bird that would otherwise be easy to recognise.
Remember to record the colour of the bird's bare parts... legs, beak, eyes and any surrounding bare skin. Beware: wet or dry mud or earth on beak and legs will often hide the real colour.
