Small pale plover, typically found on sandy beaches. Occasionally visits estuaries, seawalls, and mudflats as well. Very similar in all plumages to Kentish Plover, with which it occasionally mixes. Male is sandy brown with a black collar, pale face, and a rufous-and-black crown. Thinner collar and eye-line than Kentish Plover. Female and juvenile are similarly brown with a white collar and face. All plumages have diagnostically pale-fringed feathers which give the bird a worn, faded-out appearance; molting Kentish Plover may appear worn but not in such a uniform manner.