Eurasian dotterel

    Charadrius morinellus

Castilian: Chorlito carambolo

Catalan: Corriol pit-roig

Gallego: Píllara rubia

Euskera: Txirri lepokoduna

CLASIFICACIÓN:

Orden: Charadriiformes

Family: Charadriidae

Migratory status: Passage migrant

CONSERVATION STATUS:

On the National List of Threatened Species, it appears in the “Vulnerable” category. In the 2004 edition of the Red Book of Spanish Birds (Libro Rojo de las Aves de España) it is listed as “Endangered”.

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THREATS

In summer the nesting areas are affected by hiking (and the dogs that hikers take with them), motorcycling, and mountain biking.

Length / size: 20,5-24 cm / 57-64 cm

Identification: Wader with marked but inverse sexual dimorphism, given that the female is more eye-catching than the male. During mating season, the female has a dark brown hood with a white brow and throat; her greyish breast touches a white and black band that contrasts with her reddish belly that is black in the parts farthest away from the middle of her body; her lower belly and tail coverts are white. The male's crown is striated, his breast is browner and the black on his belly is not as evident. Outside of mating season, the crown is striated and the breast and belly are brown.

Song: Its contact call is a simple "kweek-kweek". The female's song is a simple repetitive whistle, which it sings in flight.

Diet: It feeds on insects and spiders, including to a lesser extent mollusks, worms, and plant matter, which it obtains from vegetation or under rocks.

Reproduction: It begins well into spring. They build the nest in a depression in the ground, on top of vegetation or gravel, near rocks. After laying her eggs, the female joins other females and leave the male in charge of incubation and caring for the chicks.

HABITAT

When breeding it occupies open areas with little brush cover, but when migrating it appears in steppe areas.

DISTRIBUTION

In Spain: When breeding, it is only found in the Pyrenees above 2,000 metres. When migrating it is scattered across the entire peninsula, in both interior and coastal areas.

In Castile and León: Its presence has been routinely recorded in Villafáfila (Zamora), La Nava Lake (Palencia) and Madrigal-Peñaranda (Ávila-Salamanca).

Movements and migrations: It migrates to northern Africa and the Middle East to spend the winter; its wintering in the peninsula is considered insignificant. The postnuptial passage takes place between August and September for both groups.

POPULATION

In Spain: There is an estimated population of 250 specimens which is declining, with only 1-5 breeding pairs each season.

In Castile and León: