More Water Birds
Family Charadriidae
Black-fronted Dotterel
Elseyornis melanops
Black-fronted Dotterels are seen most often at places like Jerrabombera Wetlands and river edges, where they forage over bare mud, sand and gravel. There are four records in the survey.
Black-fronted Dotterel
Elseyornis melanops
Family Charadriidae
Masked Lapwing
Vanellus miles
Masked Lapwings are large plovers with yellow fleshy wattles on their faces. They live in pairs or small groups, generally near water, on low-lying pastures, grasslands, golf courses and playing fields. They lay their eggs directly on the ground in grassy areas and will vigorously defend eggs and dependent young.
Survey numbers fluctuate, but are marginally higher in spring than winter, with some increase in numbers from 1982 to 1994. Breeding records are from sites near grassland areas, mostly in late August to late October. One dependent young was recorded from early January. R=42. BR=51.
Masked Lapwing
Vanellus miles
Family Scolopacidae
Latham’s Snipe
Gallinago hardwickii
Latham’s Snipe is a migratory wader that breeds in Japan and migrates to the east and west coast of Australia during our summer months. In the ACT it is observed mainly at Jerrabomberra Wetlands, but there are many sightings around Lake Burley Griffin and more widely where there is suitable vegetation around bodies of shallow water or mud flats. They are shy and wary, and when disturbed they explode from cover, flying swiftly and constantly changing direction before dropping to cover again. There are three records in the survey from Ngunnawal, Curtin and Murrumbateman.
Latham’s Snipe
Gallinago hardwickii
Family Laridae
Silver Gull
Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae
Silver Gull
Chroicocephalus novaehollandiae