Scientific name:

Pluvialis squatarola

About:

A large, chunky plover, larger than the similar golden plover. Spangled black, white and silvery grey above, pale grey and white below during the winter. In the spring, when adults migrate north through Britain, they have black throat, chest and belly.

How to identify:

<p>A big, grey version of golden plover with a sturdier black bill and long black legs (bluey-grey in golden plover)</p>

Where:

A common winter visitor to our coasts.

Fantastic facts:

Known in North America as the black-bellied plover