September 23 2012. Gelderland Province, Holland. Even though Holland is still very much a landscape of wide green fields, canals and low farm buildings, it is now criss-crossed with soulless motorways that slice across the gentle land.
It was on a fast motorway ride that I noticed a field dotted with stationary Lapwings. Our driver first pointed them out, proclaiming: “Kievit” I knew exactly what she meant because in Britain they’re also known as the Peewit, an onomatopoeic name reflecting its anxious call. Lapwings, Peewits, Kievits, call them what you will, they are one of those birds that capture the imagination and hearts of country folk. They are plovers and have the characteristic stand-up-and-pay-attention posture of members of that family, they are boldly marked in bottle green above and white below with a bold black bib and, most distinctively, a cow-lick of a crest. They fly as if tossed on the wind with big sideswiped swoops and calling urgently: ‘peeeWit’.
At this time of year Lapwings gather in large flocks to forage over open fields alongside Grey-lag Geese, Mute Swans and the occasional sentinel Buzzards. This photograph is courtesy of Andreas Trepte whose site www.photo-natur.de is full of neat bird pictures.
