The Kittlitz’s Plover (Charadrius pecuarius) is a small plover found in much of Sub-Saharan Africa, Madagascar, and the Nile delta. Some birds, especially in coastal areas, are resident, other populations are migratory or nomadic.
The adult Kittlitz’s plover is 14–16 cm long. In breeding plumage it has a grey-brown back, crown, and wings, an orange breast shading to white on the lower belly, and long dark grey legs. The forehead and throat are white, with black lores and a black frontal bar, the latter extending as a stripe down the sides of the neck and around the hind neck.
The Kittlitz’s plover forages for food on open dry mud and short grass, usually close to water. The specific name, pecuarius, means "grazer", referring to the grassland habitat. It hunts usually by sight for invertebrates including insects, earthworms, crustaceans, and molluscs.
The call is a plaintive tee peep and may give a hard trip when alarmed.
This species is named for Baron Heinrich von Kittlitz. The Kittlitz’s plover is gregarious outside the breeding season, feeding and roosting in mostly small groups, but in flocks of up to 250 on migration.