White-Fronted Plover

White-Fronted Plover

Charadrius marginatus

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~40% · Likely
at Gonarezhou National Park

In 3 days ~70% in a week >90%

47 Verified sightings at Gonarezhou National Park From 2019 to 2026
2,386 In all 9 parks
February Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the White-Fronted Plover

The white-fronted plover or white-fronted sandplover (Anarhynchus marginatus) is a small (45-50 g) shorebird of the family Charadriidae that inhabits sandy beaches, dunes, mudflats and the shores of rivers and lakes in sub-saharan Africa and Madagascar. It nests in small shallow scrapes in the ground and lays clutches of one to three eggs. The species is monogamous and long-lived, with a life expectancy of approximately 12 years. The vast majority of pairs that mate together stay together during the following years of breeding and retain the same territory. The white-fronted plover has a similar appearance to the Kentish plover, with a white fore crown and dark bands connecting the eyes to the bill.

Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:11

Madagascar · 2021

© Ken Behrens · XC624791 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song0:15

South Africa · 2024

© Nick Talbot · XC947060 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Call0:12

South Africa · 2019

© Frank Lambert · XC521375 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 West Coast National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~60%
2 De Hoop Nature Reserve 🇿🇦 South Africa
~40%
3 Gonarezhou National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~40%
4 iSimangaliso Wetland Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~30%
5 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~20%
6 Garden Route National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~20%
7 Table Mountain National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
8 Namib-Naukluft National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
~10%
9 Kruger National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Maputo 🇲🇿 Mozambique
~20%
2 Durban 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
3 Cape Town 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a White-Fronted Plover in Gonarezhou National Park?

Likely

About 40% of wildlife watchers report a White-Fronted Plover sighting in Gonarezhou National Park on a given day, based on 47 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 75th most-seen of the 236 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 70%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a White-Fronted Plover in Gonarezhou National Park?

February

In that month about 60% of wildlife watchers report a White-Fronted Plover in Gonarezhou National Park on a given day, against under 5% in June and August–September, the lowest months. That is one of Gonarezhou National Park's wettest months, with about 150 mm of rain against almost none in July.

What time of day is best to see a White-Fronted Plover?

Between 9 am and noon

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most White-Fronted Plover sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Gonarezhou National Park the best place to see a White-Fronted Plover?

3rd of 9

Of the 9 parks where we can rate White-Fronted Plover sightings, Gonarezhou National Park ranks 3rd at about 40%. The best odds are in West Coast National Park (South Africa, about 60%) and De Hoop Nature Reserve (South Africa, about 40%). All parks ranked.

Where does the White-Fronted Plover sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the White-Fronted Plover is recorded against all the birds logged in Gonarezhou National Park (47 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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