Nature Photographers Ltd

Dotterel Charadrius morinellus L 22cm. Beautiful and tame, pot-bellied mountain wader. Role-reversal seen when nesting: duller male incubates eggs. Adult female in summer has reddish orange breast and belly, black-bordered white collar, and blue-grey throat. Face is whitish and has white supercilium and dark cap; upperparts otherwise grey-brown, back feathers with brown margins. Legs are yellow. Adult male in summer is duller. Winter adult is grey buff with broad, pale buff supercilium and pale breast band. Juvenile is similar to winter adult but with scaly-looking back. Voice Utters a soft pierrr call. Status Rare migrant visitor, mainly to Scottish Highlands. Migrants linger briefly at traditional hilltops staging posts in England, or on coasts.