Pluvialis fulva
Silhouette: Emily Willoughby · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
The Pacific golden plover (Pluvialis fulva) is a migratory shorebird that breeds during summer in Alaska and Siberia. During nonbreeding season, this medium-sized plover migrates widely across the Pacific. The Pacific golden plover was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the other plovers in the genus Charadrius and coined the binomial name Charadrius fulvus. Gmelin based his description on the "Fulvous plover" that had been described in 1785 by the English ornithologist John Latham from specimens from Tahiti. The Pacific golden plover is now placed in the genus Pluvialis that was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760. The genus name is Latin and means relating to rain, from pluvia, 'rain'. It was believed that the plovers flocked when rain was imminent. The specific epithet is also from Latin and means 'tawny' or 'yellowish-brown'. The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.
Adults are about 25 cm (9.8 in) long with a wingspan averaging 61 cm (24 in) At their lightest, fat free,... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wilpattu National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 2 | Yala National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 3 | Raja Ampat | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 4 | Noosa National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Sundarbans National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Udawalawe National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 7 | Katmai National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Kaziranga National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 9 | West Coast National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 10 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 11 | Wilsons Promontory National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 12 | Bali Barat National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 13 | Rottnest Island | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 14 | El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 15 | Camargue | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 16 | Great Bear Rainforest | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 17 | Pacific Rim National Park Reserve | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 18 | Channel Islands National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Quanzhou | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 2 | Naha | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 3 | Vasai-Virar | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Manila | 🇵🇭 Philippines | |
| 5 | Kochi | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 6 | Thiruvananthapuram | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Nanchang | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 8 | Guangzhou | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 9 | Makassar | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 10 | Thrissur | 🇮🇳 India |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | National Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Beijing Wildlife Park | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 3 | Columbus Zoo and Aquarium | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Honolulu Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Pacific Golden-Plover sighting in Katmai National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 80th most-seen of the 93 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May and August
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Pacific Golden-Plover in Katmai National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March, June–July and September, the lowest months. April and October–February have too few records to rate.
Between 2 and 5 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Pacific Golden-Plover sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
7th of 18
Of the 18 parks where we can rate Pacific Golden-Plover sightings, Katmai National Park ranks 7th at under 5%. The best odds are in Wilpattu National Park (Sri Lanka, about 30%), Yala National Park (Sri Lanka, about 20%) and Raja Ampat (Indonesia, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Pacific Golden-Plover is recorded against all the birds logged in Katmai National Park (6 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.
