Species names in all available languages
Language | Common name |
---|---|
Afrikaans | Amerikaanse Goue Strandkiewiet |
Arabic | زقزاق ذهبي امريكي |
Asturian | Pilordu dorñu americanu |
Basque | Urre-txirri amerikarra |
Bulgarian | Доминиканска булка |
Catalan | daurada americana |
Chinese (SIM) | 美洲金鸻 |
Croatian | američki zlatar |
Czech | kulík hnědokřídlý |
Danish | Amerikansk Hjejle |
Dutch | Amerikaanse Goudplevier |
English | American Golden-Plover |
English (UK) | American Golden Plover |
English (United Arab Emirates) | American Golden Plover |
English (United States) | American Golden-Plover |
Finnish | amerikankurmitsa |
French | Pluvier bronzé |
French (France) | Pluvier bronzé |
Galician | Píllara dourada americana |
German | Prärie-Goldregenpfeifer |
Greek | Αμερικανικό Βροχοπούλι |
Haitian Creole (Haiti) | Plivye savann |
Hebrew | חופזי אמריקני |
Hungarian | Amerikai pettyeslile |
Icelandic | Gulllóa |
Italian | Piviere americano |
Japanese | アメリカムナグロ |
Korean | 미국검은가슴물떼새 |
Lithuanian | Amerikinis sėjikas |
Malayalam | അമേരിക്കൻ പൊൻമണൽക്കോഴി |
Norwegian | kanadalo |
Polish | siewka szara |
Portuguese (Brazil) | batuiruçu |
Portuguese (Portugal) | Batuiruçu |
Romanian | Ploier auriu american |
Russian | Американская ржанка |
Serbian | Američki zlatni vivak |
Slovak | kulík hnedokrídly |
Slovenian | Ameriška zlata prosenka |
Spanish | Chorlito Dorado Americano |
Spanish (Argentina) | Chorlo Pampa |
Spanish (Chile) | Chorlo dorado |
Spanish (Costa Rica) | Chorlito Dorado Menor |
Spanish (Cuba) | Pluvial dorado |
Spanish (Dominican Republic) | Chorlo Americano |
Spanish (Ecuador) | Chorlo Dorado Americano |
Spanish (Honduras) | Chorlo Dorado Americano |
Spanish (Mexico) | Chorlo Dorado Americano |
Spanish (Panama) | Chorlo Dorado Americano |
Spanish (Paraguay) | Chorlo dorado |
Spanish (Peru) | Chorlo Dorado Americano |
Spanish (Puerto Rico) | Chorlito Dorado |
Spanish (Spain) | Chorlito dorado americano |
Spanish (Uruguay) | Chorlo Dorado |
Spanish (Venezuela) | Playero Dorado |
Swedish | amerikansk tundrapipare |
Turkish | Amerika Altın Yağmurcunu |
Ukrainian | Сивка американська |
Zulu | unomvulakazi waseMelika |
Revision Notes
Oscar W. Johnson revised the account. JoAnn Hackos, Linda A. Hensley, Robin K. Murie, Daphne R. Walmer, Gracey Brouillard, and Claire Walter copyedited the account. Arnau Bonan Barfull curated the media.
Pluvialis dominica (Müller, 1776)
Definitions
- PLUVIALIS
- pluvialis
- dominica
The Key to Scientific Names
Legend Overview
American Golden-Plover Pluvialis dominica Scientific name definitions
Version: 2.0 — Published June 21, 2024
Sounds and Vocal Behavior
Vocalizations
Development
No data available.
Vocal Array
Known repertoires are incomplete. Many vocalizations of the American Golden-Plover and Pacific Golden-Plover (Pluvialis fulva) are similar, but often distinctive during breeding and non-breeding seasons. Calls of the Pacific Golden-Plover are somewhat better known than those of the American Golden-Plover. Nine types of vocalizations are described here. On the breeding grounds, individuals have (1) a Repetitive Call accompanying territorial display flight by males; (2) a Complex Whistle used in aggression and intrapair communication; and a variety of monosyllabic and polysyllabic calls including (3) Alarm/Distraction Calls, (4) Aggression Calls, (5) Courtship Calls, and (6) Intrapair Calls. In the nonbreeding season, they have (7) Flight Calls, (8) Alarm Calls, and (9) Aggression Calls (the last two calls are best known in the Pacific Golden-Plover).
Breeding Season
Repetitive Call. This is also termed the "rhythmically repeated call" (72) or "song" (31). This call is given during the Butterfly Display (see Behavior: Spacing) and differs strikingly between species. The American Golden-Plover makes an abrupt tlink or tdlink [described as tud'ling (224), toojick (225), ktoodlee (171), chu-leek or too-lick (46), and tulik or ptulick (31)] repeated at rates of 50–130/min (37, 72; Figure 3A). The Pacific Golden-Plover makes a plaintive pee-chew-ee [described as pee-er-wee (J. T. Nichols in 203), tee-tyu-eet (226), and ptee-oo-leeee (31) at rates of 15–40/min (37, 72; Figure 3B).
Complex Whistle. This is also termed "long call" (227), "song" (72), or "trilling song" (31). It is given by the male during descent and on the ground immediately after alighting from the Butterfly Display flight. It is usually repeated twice on the ground in rapid succession with simultaneous head-pumping. The female often echoes the call and also pumps her head. The male (and to a lesser extent the female) frequently gives the call from the ground or air during intraspecific or interspecific chases or territorial interactions, and in response to intruders passing overhead. Occasionally, it is given by the male during the Butterfly Display flight. The basic call in both species is wit-weeyou-wit , with a somewhat more warbling quality in the Pacific Golden-Plover (37; Figure 3C and Figure 3D). It is not uncommon to hear variations in which ≥ 1 syllables are repeated or slightly altered. Drury (171) described several versions of the American Golden-Plover Complex Whistle, including tsee-witwit-tsee, ka-sweeeooowit, and kloo tswit-tswit kloo; Byrkjedal and Thompson (31) likened it to witt-wee-wyu-witt-witt. J. T. Nichols (in 203) rendered the Pacific Golden-Plover call as piterweeu, piterweeu, piterwit or peeperwip, peeperweeu, peeperwip, noting a similarity to calls of the Eastern Whip-poor-will (Antrostomus vociferus); Sauer (227) rendered the call as quee quee que yah, queequeequeeah, de de dee yah, and kwe kwe kwee oih; Kondratiev (226) wrote it as teep-teeyu-veet-veet-teeyu-veet; and Byrkjedal and Thompson wrote it (31) as t'wee-witt-wiy-wyu-witt-wju.
Alarm/Distraction Calls. This differs between the species, with many minor variants reported. The American Golden-Plover alarm call is rendered as kleeep (O. W. Johnson) or a more drawn-out klee-yeep shifting to killik-killik as the threat increases (37; Figure 3E), also kill-ee-oh kill-ee or pull-ee-oo plee-ee (55), te-tee-duiee (225), kleeear and turdileee (171). The Pacific Golden-Ploveralarm call is peee (varies from shorter to more drawn-out versions; O. W. Johnson), shifting with increasing threat to deedleek (37; see Figure 3F), or pfeeb shifting to pfeebleeb or deedleek (227). Shifting to a different call with increasing threat is not irreversible, as birds often switch back and forth. Highly agitated American Golden-Plovers also call klee-yeep instead of killik-killik during injury feigning (O. W. Johnson; see Behavior: Predation). Alarm/Distraction Calls are similar, but probably not identical in both sexes.
Aggression Calls. Those of an American Golden-Plover on the ground were reportedly the same as Alarm/Distraction vocalizations ( 171); those of a Pacific Golden-Plover were a chattering but melodic de rede rede rederedere (227). During aggressive aerial pursuit chases of the American Golden-Plover, the pursuer calls tdlinkit-tdlinkit (37; Figure 3G) or toodleeka-toodleeka (171) and pumps its head vigorously. No comparable call was detected in the Pacific Golden-Plover.
Courtship Calls. Not yet described in the American Golden-Plover; captive Pacific Golden-Plover males courting on the ground gave soft trilled teeree teeree and bursts of pk pk pk (227).
Intrapair Calls. Subtle, undetected calls are likely used by both species in intrapair communication.
Nonbreeding Season
Flight Calls. Vary in both species. Urner (228) lists extensive "vocabulary" of 20 calls for migrating American Golden-Plovers; most frequently heard were whistled que and que-del. More recent descriptions: for the American Golden-Plover: tyy-ee or tuu-ee, also tuu-u-ee and tu-uu-ee (229), queedle (7); for the Pacific Golden-Plover: chu-it, chu-eet, or chu-ee (uh) (229), chuwi or chuweedle (7). Flight Calls of the American Golden-Plover usually stress the first or second syllable, while Pacific Golden-Plover Flight Calls stress the second syllable.
Alarm Calls. Those of the Pacific Golden-Plover include drawn-out chu-EET or chu-EE(uh) with emphatic stress as shown (229), sharp pseeep (OWJ), or wheet (7). Additional observations (O. W. Johnson): Alström ( 229) and Paulson (7) renditions are consistent with Pacific Golden-Plover alarm vocalizations on Hawaii overwintering grounds; the frequently heard chu-EET and chu-EE(uh) calls of disturbed overwintering birds have not been detected on breeding grounds, possibly Alarm Calls of breeding birds (both species) restricted to those already described (see type 3 vocalizations).
Aggression Calls. Not studied in the American Golden-Plover. Aggressive interactions and accompanying calls are very common among overwintering Pacific Golden-Plovers in Hawaii, especially territorial individuals and birds at nocturnal roosts (see Behavior: Spacing and Agonistic Behavior). Calls were melodious and varied: pseer, sweerit, psweer, psweer-wit, pswer-pswer-pswerrr-wit-wit (230, O. W. Johnson). Of these, the longer versions are either the same or very similar to the Complex Whistle of breeding birds. Presumably, these calls are very similar in theAmerican Golden-Plover.
The acoustic features of Pluvialis calls indicate that the Repetitive Call is "ancestral to the genus" and demonstrate obvious homologies between certain elements of the Repetitive Calls and Complex Whistles of the American Golden-Plover and Pacific Golden-Plover (72). Additional information on breeding and non-breeding vocalizations (mostly minor variations) can be found in other sources, the most useful probably being Pym (23) and Cramp and Simmons ( 24).
Geographic Variation
Mostly unknown. The foregoing descriptions of calls are from relatively few sites on the breeding and overwintering grounds.
Phenology
The American Golden-Plover is probably most vocal during the breeding season, but migrants and overwintering birds also vocalize frequently.
Daily Pattern of Vocalizing
The Repetitive Call during the Butterfly Display is heard throughout the day and night during the pre-incubation phase of the breeding cycle. According to Byrkjedal and Thompson (31), repetitive calling is most frequent among unpaired Pacific Golden-Plover males, which is consistent with the advertisement function of this call/display (see Behavior: Sexual Behavior). As incubation gets underway, repetitive call/display is mostly restricted to a male's off-duty hours primarily at night (see Breeding: Incubation). Other vocalizations vary with daily circumstances; there is no clear pattern.
Places of Vocalizing
Repetitive Call and Flight Calls are heard only during flight; Complex Whistle and Aggression Calls (breeding and non-breeding seasons) are given mostly from the ground, occasionally while in flight. Courtship and Intrapair Calls are given primarily on the ground, possibly during flight. Alarm/Distraction calls are given from the ground only. Alarm Calls (non-breeding season) are from the ground and in flight. Ground calls are given in an extensive area around the nest, while initial alarm calls of an incubating bird are sometimes given from the nest itself. No perches are required for vocalizations, although the agitated bird often runs about in the vicinity of the nest, stopping and calling from rocks and other prominences. Presumably, any elevation, however slight, facilitates responses when threatened by an intruder. Aerial calls, especially the Repetitive Call, is given over wide areas, often beyond apparent boundaries of territory (see Behavior: Spacing). Calls of overwintering birds are not limited to specific sites.
Nonvocal Sounds
None reported.