Hoploxypterus cayanus
Silhouette: Emily Willoughby · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The pied plover (Hoploxypterus cayanus), also known as the pied lapwing, is a species of bird in the family Charadriidae. It is a bird of least concern according to the IUCN and can be found in northern South America. The species name cayanus refers to Cayenne, the capital of French Guiana, where the pied plover can be found.
There is confusion around its common name. Historically, the pied plover was considered to be a plover, which is a bird part of the subfamily Charadriinae. Most recently, it has been moved to the subfamily Vanellinae, which are the lapwings. The pied plover is still referred to as a plover because it physically resembles that group of birds in shape and size. However, based on taxonomy, it is more correct to refer to it as a lapwing.
The pied plover belongs to the order Charadriiformes known as the shorebirds. It is placed within the family Charadriidae and is the only species placed in the genus Hoploxypterus that was introduced in 1856 by the French naturalist Charles Lucien Bonaparte. The pied plover was formerly placed in the genus Vanellus but molecular phylogenetic studies have shown that it is not closely related to the other lapwings.... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Tambopata National Reserve | 🇵🇪 Peru | |
| 3 | Manu National Park | 🇵🇪 Peru | |
| 4 | Yasuní National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 5 | Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 6 | Amacayacu National Natural Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia | |
| 7 | Sierra de la Macarena National Park | 🇨🇴 Colombia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Pied Lapwing sighting in Yasuní National Park on a given day, based on 234 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 210th most-seen of the 533 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Pied Lapwing in Yasuní National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April and June–October, the lowest months.
Between 2 and 5 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Pied Lapwing sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 7
Of the 7 parks where we can rate Pied Lapwing sightings, Yasuní National Park ranks 4th at about 10%. The best odds are in Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas (Brazil, about 60%), Tambopata National Reserve (Peru, about 10%) and Manu National Park (Peru, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Pied Lapwing is recorded against all the birds logged in Yasuní National Park (234 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.
