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Photo: Denise Doherty |
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UK
Safari Tip:
Discover amazing facts and information about Lapwings with this 24 page
paperback in the Nature shop - click
here
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Latin name: Vanellus vanellus
Size: Approximately 30cm.
Distribution: Found throughout the UK.
Months seen: All year round.
Habitat: In winter mainly on farmland and fields. In summer on wet
meadows and marshes.
Food: Worms and insects.
Special features: The lapwing is mainly iridescent purple-green on the
back and wings, with white plumage underneath. The legs are red
and the base of the rump is light brown. There is a broad black bib around the neck
and it has a wispy head crest which is unique among UK birds.
In flight the wings appear very wide and rounded. The call of the lapwing sounds
like a shrill "pee-wit" and has earned it the common name of 'peewit'.
About a third of UK lapwings are resident although some move south. The remainder fly to Ireland or the
continent. The majority of birds which survive the winter return to within 20km of their birthplace.
Lapwing eggs used to be a very popular food, and in the 1800's they were collected in their thousands. Even as recently as the Second World War they were
bought by the Ministry of Food to be turned into dried egg powder forming part of
the egg rations.
Lapwings on Winter Fields - a poem by Mike Sharpe
Guide to Wetland Birds
UK Safari Bird Section
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