The Lapwing is a bird that has many names. Peewit is one of the more common, a name it gets from its rather weezy, drawn-out call. It is also known as the Green Plover.
This is a widespread breeding species across Britain, breeding mainly on farmland, especially among crops grown in spring where there is bare soil and short grass. It also breeds on pastures, wet grassland, fens, bogs, marshes and even industrial sites, basically anywhere there is bare ground and damp areas for the chicks to feed. In the winter this bird forms large flocks that tend to be seen on lowland farmland, but during cold weather these flocks can move the slightly warmer coast.
Another farmland bird that has had a drastic drop in numbers over the past few years, partly due to changes in agriculture, especially the move from spring to autumn sowing of cereal crops. It is not a rare bird, 240,000 pairs breed in Britain, with over 2 million individuals in the winter months that arrive from Russia and eastern Europe but the breeding population has fallen by over 49% in the past 11 years.
Strange how some birds have multiple names and how ornithologists can't make up their minds. My little Observers Book Of Birds, which I had when I was 7, favours Green Plover, Yellow Bunting and Hedge Accentor. But a bird by any other name....
ReplyDeleteHi John,
ReplyDeleteIt is amazing isn`t it!? When I was younger we used to call the Dunnock (or Hedge Accentor if you prefer!) a Hedge Sparrow, how times change!
J
Hedge Sparrow for me also.. lovely images of the Peewits John.
ReplyDeleteThinking back, I rarely see them where they were fairly commonplace in the fields locally.
ReplyDeleteIts "Peewit", but then I'm from darkest Somerset originally John.
ReplyDeleteLovely images.
It was nothing to see loads of them nesting on the ground in those days.
In East Anglia I have certainly noticed the drop in numbers over the last 10 years.
Another lovely bird from you. It is disturbing how drastic the population drops have been.
ReplyDeleteThe sensational Sir Tom Eagerly says:
ReplyDeleteI can't help feeling the bird would do even better if it had two legs.
Thanks Andrew, I am afraid to say I do say Dunnock now, but occasionally when I am with my Dad I slip into Hedge Sparrow mode!
ReplyDeleteJ
Hi John,
ReplyDeleteYes, the humble Lapwing is not as common as it once was.
J
Hi Roy,
ReplyDeleteYes, Peewit or Lapwing for me, I have never used Green Plover. You still see a few at Maxey, but the numbers are definitely lower than a few years back.
J
Hi Susan,
ReplyDeleteThankyou. Yes, although not a rare bird, the huge flocks you used to see are now gone, along with many other birds!
J
Hi Sir Tom,
ReplyDeleteIt has two, it just balances on one to keep the other warm and then swaps them over!
J