Who named this bird? If ever there were a competition for misnomers, the mountain plover would take first prize. Neither its common nor its scientific name fits. The bird doesn’t live in or near the mountains. It prefers to nest on flat, bare ground on the arid shortgrass prairie. Ideal plover habitat can be created by fire, very heavy grazing, or hungry prairie dogs. Likewise, the plover’s scientific name,
Charadrius montanus, is misleading.
The "Charadriidae" are shorebirds. Unlike most plovers or shorebirds, the mountain plover is usually not found near open water or even on wet soil! You may be wondering how anyone could miss the mark so badly when naming a species. Apparently, the bird was originally named the Rocky Mountain plover because the first specimens were taken within sight of those mountains. Ahhh!
Mountain plover populations have been in decline. Colorado is the stronghold and primary breeding ground for the species, and more than half of the world's population nests in the state. Plovers arrive in late March in their breeding plumage, looking like pale versions of the more common killdeer, but without chest stripes. Males and females are similar in size and color. Their uppers are a pale, sandy brown. They have a black crown and a black stripe extending from the base of the beak to the eye.
Males perform aerial displays to attract a mate, flying to a height of 15 to 30 feet, holding their wings up over the back in a sharp V, then floating back to the ground in a "falling leaf" display. They also perform a "butterfly display" with slow, deep wing beats.
Nests are usually situated on hilltops and in dry swales, sometimes in the shelter of manure piles. During courtship, males make several nest scrapes before one is eventually chosen for a nest. Hens lay three well-camouflaged eggs that are dark olive with black markings, first on bare ground and then gradually building up a nest around the hatched eggs with rootlets and grass. Females will sometimes leave the nest to the males so they can lay and incubate another clutch with a different male!
Chicks can run and capture their own food soon after hatching. Two to five days after the eggs hatch, adults may move the brood as far as half a mile to a mile and a half, then remain in that area until the chicks are fledged. Mountain plovers feed primarily on insects, especially spiders, beetles, grasshoppers, crickets and ants.
Wildlife enthusiasts who wish to see this misnamed bird up close and personal can attend the 4th Annual Mountain Plover Festival, April 30–May 2, 2010, in Karval, Colorado! Local ranchers will provide tours, home cooked meals and full transportation to all tour sites. For more information, call Carl and Cherry Stogsdill, 719/446-5354 or visit the festival's Web site. Please register by April 15, 2010!