The western snowy plover (Charadrius nivosus) – named after its snowy white feathers – has lived on the Pacific Coast for thousands of years. This small, threatened shorebird, about the size of a sparrow, was long thought to be a subspecies of the Kentish plover, but is now known to be a distinct species. The snowy plover is shorter-legged, paler and greyer above than the Kentish, and breeding males lack a rufous cap. The eye mask is also poorly developed or absent. It breeds in the southern and western United States, the Caribbean, Ecuador, Peru, and Chile.
