Description: The Masked Lapwing Vanellus miles, has a length of 34-38cm. In northern Australia it was known as the Masked Plover, while in southern Australia it was known as the Spurwinged Plover. They have a black crown and back of neck with a narrow band of black extending down the sides of the upper breast and a black tip on the end of their tail feathers. They have a yellow iris and a large yellow wattle. The short yellow bill has a brown tip, while the legs and feet are purple-red. The neck and underparts are white, while the back is olive-brown. Their unique feature is the black tipped yellow bony spur on the shoulder which is used against predators. The sexes are alike but the black is more mottled on the young, who have a larger yellow wattle and lack spurs. |
Habitat: Swamps, flooded grounds with short grass, paddocks with dams, airfields, near beaches and wetlands such as at Bushy Park Wetlands. The sub race miles novaehollandiae is more common in the SE of Australia, while miles miles - whose wattle extends behind the eye and lacks the black down the sides of the upper breast, is more common in the NE of the country, however they do interbreed midway up the east coast.
Voice: Metallic grating staccato 'kekekekekek' or single repeated 'kek'. |
Flight: They fly with steady beats of their broad wings. Food: They eat insects, crabs, worms, yabbies and other small crustaceans, invertebrates, seeds and herbage.
Breeding: They can be aggressive when nesting and both sexes co-operate with building and defending the nest. The nest is a shallow cup of twigs and grass stems at ground level usually in a grassy area near water. They have also been known to built a nest on a flat roof. The female lays 3-4 yellow-olive, dark blotched eggs, 49 x 36 mm in SE Australia, (43 x 32 mm in NE Australia). They prefer wet weather when breeding, so in the north they breed in Summer - Autumn and in the south from Winter - Spring. |
By Trevor Hudson |
Published February 2006 |
Updated February 2006 |