Tibetan Sand Plover

Overview

Tibetan Sand Plover (Anarhynchus atrifrons) is a species of Plovers (Charadriidae) in the order Shorebirds, Gulls and Alcids.

Scientific Classification

Genus: Anarhynchus; binomial: Anarhynchus atrifrons; authority: (Wagler, 1829).

Distribution

Breeding range: the Palearctic. Non-breeding range: e, s Africa, Indian Ocean islands and Indian subcontinent to coastal s China, se Asia, Greater Sundas and Sulawesi.

Conservation Status

This taxon is listed as Extant (living) in the IOC World Bird List.

Remarks

Tibetan Sand Plover Anarhynchus atrifrons (including pamirensis and schaeferi) is split from Lesser Sand Plover A. mongolus (re-named Siberian Sand Plover) based on phenotypic differences and phylogenetic analysis which demonstrates paraphyly of these two taxa relative to Anarhynchus leschenaultii (Livezey 2010; Wei et al. 2022).