Characteristics
The Northern Lapwing is a 28–33 cm long bird with a 67–87 cm wingspan and a body mass of 128–330 g. It is the shortest-legged of the lapwings. Males have long crests, black crown, throat, and breast with a white face. Females and young species have shorter crests, less marked heads, and similar plumage.
Habitat & Distribution
Commonly found in open habitats: grassland, farmland, wetlands. Migratory species, wintering in North Africa or northern Asia. Northern Lapwings migrate in large flocks during the day. The populations in Europe stand at around 3,180,000-4,590,000 mature individuals and are present in most European countries.
Threats
The Northern Lapwing faces multiple threats leading to its mortality. These include the intensification and change in agricultural practices, human hunting, pollution, nest predation by native and non-native predators and loss of its habitat. This species is also very sensitive to collision with power lines.
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