The Ringed Plover is a small shorebirds, delicate and beautifully proportioned. In Iceland they breed all over the country, from the coast and lowlands, up to the highlands. Its favourite habitat are open sandy areas where there is little vegetation and it lays its eggs in sand or gravel.

The Ringed Plovers are migratory birds that fly south to South West Europe in the autumn and arrive back in Iceland in April. It is estimated that the breeding population counts around 50,000 pairs.

This weekend we drove into the interior for our annual bird count of the Fishing Lakes area, Veiðivötn, in the Southern part of the Icelandic highlands. The snow is melting quickly now and most roads have cleared. We came across this pair of Ringed Plovers that were hoping around their nest, keeping intruders away.

Ringed Plovers are migrants that breed all over the country, from coastal areas to the interior. Their typical habitat is sandy areas with scarce vegetation.

The Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula) is one of the migratory birds that arrives in Iceland in April. In the winter time it stays in South West Europe.  

The Ringed Plover lays its eggs in sand and gravel all over the country. The breeding population counts around 50,000 pairs.

The photoes of the chick are taken on the banks of Ölfusá River.