Little ringed plovers at the Gravel Pit (inkl. mating)

This year in spring I visited a Gravel Pit near Wels in Upper Austria for some #Birdphotography there. I had the luck that the little ringed plovers there were very active and even tried to mate in front of me. And I was able to take a picture of it. Unfortunately the gravel pit is has a lot of level differences and you are almost always taking pictures from above. So I lied a lot on the dirty ground to get some better shots but since I didn't want to lay down in the mudd on the water level it was impossible to get so deep down there. So I had to take some pictures from above.

But since the birds where very active and flew around a lot some shots where possible from above whenever they decided to fly up and walk around in the mud a little, like this first picture here:

Little ringed Plover in the dry sand. Picture: Florian Glechner.

From far away the little ringed plovers are pretty good camouflaged since they have nearly the same color as the sand in the pit. But if you know where they are you just need to get closer and closer and wait for them to come closer to you when you sit down or stand still. If you avoid fast movements they can get pretty close and then it is your chance to take some pictures. I really like the yellow ring over the eyes of this bird but also the tiny little feathers on the side underneath the wings.

The little ringed plovers are one of the birds that are not that shy, if you have enough time you might get pretty close, or they even come pretty close to you on their own. This species differs from the larger ringed plover in leg colour, the head pattern, and the presence of a clear yellow eye-ring. The ringed Plover I only saw once in Helgoland since it is very seldom here. The little ringed plover is a lot more common here in Austria, especially around here where I live.

Little ringed Plover in the shallow water of the gravel pit. Picture: Florian Glechner.

I am already looking forward to next spring to see them again, I know already that I will visit several places including this gravel pit for some birdphotography of them and of course other species that I find there. Since I also have a Spotting Scope that has a way better range than my camera, I will often also only watch birds through the spotting scope and don't always take pictures.

Sand, water and mudd, the perfect habitat for the little ringed Plover. Picture: Florian Glechner.

Male and female little ringed Plover. Picture: Florian Glechner.

Mating of the little ringed Plovers. Picture: Flroian Glechner.