Sea Lark.
The Ringed Plover has been around since the late glacial period. (Ref The birds of ancient Britain: first recommendations for Category F of the British List Joanne H. Cooper, John R. Stewart, Dale Serjeantson 14 June 2022 British Ornithologists' Union.) This means it was here long before humans colonised our area of the YDNP.
Records for its presence in the dales goes back to Fothergill in 1799 and 1823. Here the bird we now know as Ringed Plover, was called by other names, notably the Sea Lark , Ringed Dotterel, Ring Dotterel, Ring Neck, Sand Runner, Sand Dotteral and Sand Lark. The name ringed plover was given by Carl Linneas in 1758 when he attempted earlier, to classify all bird species known at the time using a Latin binomial system of genus and species, hence the Ringed Plover being Charadrius hiaticula which means “Charadrius: from the Ancient Greek word kharadrios, meaning a bird that lives in ravines or river valleys (kharadra meaning "ravine") and hiaticula: A Latin combination of hiatus (meaning "cleft", "gap", or "opening") and -cola (meaning "dweller" or "inhabitant")”.
Birds such as these were often shot to help identify them – which sounds a very strange way nowadays to go about such things. It wasn’t until Gilbert White (1720 – 1793) who expressed a view that people should be out in nature observing birds and their behaviour. He is thus credited with being responsible for the start of bird watching. This prompted much later, Victorian school teachers teaching birds to students – see the photo below ( thanks to Dales Countryside Museum )
“ The Ringed Plover is a small, dumpy, short-legged wading bird. It's brownish grey above and whitish below. It has an orange bill, tipped with black, orange legs and a black-and-white pattern on its head and breast. In flight, it shows a broad, white wing-stripe. They mostly breed on beaches around the coast, but they have also now begun breeding inland in sand and gravel pits and former industrial sites. Many UK birds live here all year round, but birds from Europe winter in Britain, and birds from Greenland and Canada pass through on migration.” RSPB
The ringed plovers in the dales are usually seen on passage, passing through on the way to breeding areas and stopping off at places such as Semerwater, the second-largest natural glacial lake in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Records of sightings show 5 birds recorded in 2021/22 and 1 on 6 June 2025,1 on 2nd July 2025 ( Waterbird Counts at Semer Water I.R. Court January 2025).
Semerwater supports a variety of fauna and flora and due to its ancient nature has a number of legends, songs and ballads associated with it.
The British Trust for Ornithology ( BTO) population abundance chart below shows a stark decline in this beautiful bird. Many factors will contribute to this trend but human influence in one form or another will no doubt be the most significant factor.
Overlooking Semerwater, is Addlebrough, a flat-top hill, atop of which is a bronze age cairn. This is a well-preserved example of a round cairn a prehistoric funerary monument which often occupy prominent locations in upland landscapes. The cairn is 10.5m in diameter but only 0.6m high. Unfortunately, it has seen much natural and human erosion. Like other sites, this site has examples of prehistoric rock art - cup and rings. These features date from late Neolithic to Bronze age and although their exact meanings are unknown, they are often associated with burial monuments. The marked rocks here are well marked, one boulder has 25 cups, 3 of which have associated rings.
The bronze age people who frequented this area left traces by means of beautifully crafted arrow heads, the markings on stones mentioned above, pottery shards with inscribed patterns and in Semerwater itself, a stunning bronze spear head. This perhaps was a votive offering. These precious artifacts are housed in The Dales Countryside Museum in Hawes.
As the paleo-archaeological record shows ringed plovers were around and the climate conducive to Semerwater being a place they would frequent, it is more than likely that the bronze age peoples who lived in the area would have heard or seen them. The development of farming and settlements during this period lead Evans to suggest that this was “the start of separation of people and nature” 1999 Evans.
My piece Sea Lark reflects both the bird and echoes of time and place.
