About Vanellus senegallus (Linnaeus, 1766)
The African wattled lapwing, whose scientific name is Vanellus senegallus, is also called the Senegal wattled plover or just wattled lapwing. It is a large lapwing, belonging to the group of moderately large wading birds in the plover family Charadriidae. It is a resident breeding species across most of sub-Saharan Africa, excluding rainforest regions, though it makes seasonal movements. These birds are conspicuous and easy to identify. They are large brown waders with a black crown, white forehead, and large yellow facial wattles. Their tail is white with a black tip, and their long legs are yellow. In flight, the upperwings have black flight feathers and brown coverts separated by a white bar, while the underwings are white with black flight feathers. The African wattled lapwing produces a loud peep-peep call. This species is a common breeder in wet lowland habitats, especially damp grassland. It often forages in drier habitats such as golf courses, picking insects and other invertebrates from the ground. It lays three or four eggs in a scrape it makes on the ground. This species is covered by the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA).
