Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus

Despite its name, the Kentish Plover is not native to Kent, UK. While it can appear as a rare passage migrant in the UK, it has many small, native populations in southern Europe, North Africa and Asia. In Europe, it is known in Spain, Greece, Turkey and even Austria. In Africa, Senegal, the Mediterranean coast and the Canary and Cape Verde islands. In Asia, the Middle East and Central Asia. A former American subspecies has been reclassified as a separate species (c. 2010): the Snowy Plover. The above photos of the red-headed male were taken by Alexandra Makhnina in Kazakhstan.