Mountain Plover

The Mountain Plover is an atypical member of its family, inhabiting dry short-grass prairie, plowed fields, and other open upland habitat of the North American Great Plains and intermountain West rather than the shorelines and wetlands used by most plovers. Despite its name, it is not particularly associated with mountains, favoring flat, sparsely vegetated grassland instead.

Its plumage is notably plain, lacking the dark breast band that characterizes most Charadrius plovers, with an overall buffy-brown upperpart tone that blends well with dry grassland and bare soil. A black forecrown patch and dark line through the eye appear in breeding condition, offering some facial contrast against an otherwise subdued plumage.

A plain buffy-brown body feather lacking any breast band, found in dry short-grass prairie or a fallow agricultural field in the North American interior, is a good indicator of this species.

Shape and Size

Body feathers are plain and moderate in size, and flight feathers are somewhat longer than in many small plovers, consistent with a bird adapted to extended flights over open grassland rather than short shoreline hops.

Color and Pattern

• Upperparts are plain buffy-brown, unmarked by barring or strong patterning.
• Underparts are pale buffy-white, again largely unmarked.
• Unlike most plovers, there is no dark breast band.
• In breeding condition, a black patch appears on the forecrown along with a dark line through the eye, though these are head feathers rather than body feathers.

Shaft and Vane

Shafts are pale throughout, consistent with the overall plain, sandy-buff coloration of this species.

Distinguishing from Similar Species

The absence of any breast band is the most useful distinguishing feature separating Mountain Plover from nearly all other regularly encountered Charadrius plovers, which show either a complete or partial dark band; combined with its dry grassland habitat, a plain, bandless buffy-brown plover feather points strongly to this species.

Adults show plain buffy-brown upperparts and pale buffy-white underparts without a breast band, with a black forecrown patch and dark eye-line appearing in breeding condition. Sexes look similar. Juveniles are duller and more finely patterned above, lacking the black facial markings of breeding adults. Molt occurs mainly after breeding, with body feathers refreshed before migration to wintering grounds.

The Mountain Plover breeds in short-grass prairie and heavily grazed or fallow agricultural fields of the North American Great Plains and parts of the intermountain West, wintering in similarly open, sparsely vegetated habitat in the southwestern United States and Mexico. It is a migratory species, notably tied to dry upland habitat rather than shorelines or wetlands throughout its annual cycle.

Mountain Plovers forage on bare or sparsely vegetated ground, taking insects and other invertebrates using a run-stop-peck technique similar to other plovers, but entirely away from water. They are often associated with grazing bison or cattle and prairie dog colonies, which help maintain the short, open vegetation structure the species favors. Their call is a low, soft whistled note, less piercing than some relatives. Nests are shallow scrapes on bare ground in open grassland or fallow fields. For feather finders, a plain, unbanded buffy-brown feather found in dry short-grass prairie or a fallow field in the North American interior is a good indicator of this species.