Crab-plover
Dromas ardeola
- Family
- Crab-Plover (Dromadidae)
- Order
- Charadriiformes
Overview
The crab-plover or crab plover (Dromas ardeola) is a coastal wader (shorebird). It is the only member of the genus Dromas and the family Dromadidae. It is unique among waders in making use of ground warmth to aid the incubation of its eggs. The crab-plover is classified in the suborder Lari in a group together with the Glareolidae (pratincoles and coursers), and next most closely related to the Laridae (gulls and terns), rather than to most other waders such as plovers (suborder Charadrii) and sandpipers (suborder Scolopaci).
Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Range and habitat
Breeds sandy coasts and islands of Red Sea, Arabian Peninsula and Persian Gulf; ranges southwestern Indian Ocean coast to KwaZulu Natal, Malagasy region including Seychelles, northern Indian Ocean islands eastward to western India, Sri Lanka, and Andaman Islands.
Range description: AviList Global Avian Checklist.
Sources and further reading
- Wikipedia: Crab-plover
- eBird: sightings, maps and photos
- xeno-canto: sound recordings
- Birds of the World: full species account (subscription)
- BirdLife DataZone: status and threats
- IUCN Red List (threat status)
- AviList global checklist (taxonomy)
Last updated September 29, 2026.
