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The
New Zealand Dotterel,
Red-breasted Plover, or
New Zealand Plover (
Charadrius obscurus) is an endangered species found only in certain areas of
New ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. Its
MāoriMāori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
names include
Tūturiwhatu, Pukunui, and Kūkuruatu. It is related to the
Eurasian dotterelThe Eurasian Dotterel , or in Europe just Dotterel, is a small wader in the plover family of birds.It breeds in the Arctic tundra of northern Eurasia, from Norway to eastern Siberia, and on suitable mountain plateaus such as the Scottish highlands and the Alps...
.
New Zealand Dotterels are shorebirds and are usually found on sandy beaches and sandspits or feeding on tidal estuaries.
Dotterels are nearing extinction with about 1300 northern dotterels, and approximately 75 or so southern dotterels.
Breeding
Parents lay eggs in the spring and summer. They nest on beaches above the high tide mark, and the nest is just a shallow hole dug in the ground, not made of twigs like a nest in a tree. The chicks hatch about 28 days after the eggs have been laid. Because the nests are on the ground, chicks can walk the day they hatch and can usually fly within 6-8 weeks.
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