Skip to content

India’s Yellow-wattled Lapwing Index Fell 32% Over the Long Term While the Recent Estimate Was Flat and Uncertain

Yellow-wattled lapwing standing on open ground in Pench National Park, India
Conservation · Population & status

The national abundance index for yellow-wattled lapwing (Vanellus malabaricus) showed a clear long-term decline in India, according to the 2026 interim update of State of India’s Birds. Comparing the reporting-based abundance index in 2024/25 with the baseline before 2000, the long-term trend was estimated at −32.2%.

The numerical update was released on 6 May 2026 as version 2 of the State of India’s Birds dataset. It used 48 million eBird observations from across India through 31 May 2025 and recalculated numerical range and trend estimates for 942 species already included in the assessment.

The recent annual trend was essentially flat

The current annual trend — the average annual change in the reporting-based abundance index from 2015/16 to 2024/25 — was estimated at +0.01%. The uncertainty was broad enough that the recent annual estimate provided no clear evidence for either an increase or a decline.

The estimated national distribution range was about 1.66 million km². The species is resident in India and is strongly associated with open habitats.

A numerical update, not a new priority assessment

The 2026 interim release updated the numerical estimates for range, long-term trend and current annual trend. State of India’s Birds explicitly states that the previously assigned categorical assessments were not recalculated in this version. The retained current-trend category is therefore “Stable”, but it should not be read as a newly calculated conclusion from the +0.01% estimate.

The species remains in the low conservation-priority category used by the assessment, is globally listed as Least Concern and is protected under Schedule II of India’s Wild Life (Protection) Act.

Sources and image credit

  1. State of India’s Birds Partnership. (2026). State of India’s Birds: Range, trends, and conservation status – 2025 interim update (Version 2) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.20036633Primary interim release, created 6 May 2026.
  2. State of India’s Birds Partnership. (2026). Yellow-wattled Lapwing (Vanellus malabaricus) factsheet: 2025 update.India-wide LTT −32.23% (95% CI −41.53 to −21.72), CAT +0.01%/year (95% CI −0.91 to +0.94), DRS 1,657,178 km².

Image: Charles J. Sharp — yellow-wattled lapwing photographed in Pench National Park, Madhya Pradesh, India. Source: Wikimedia Commons. Representative image for this story; not presented as an animal or scene from the reported study or event. · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

About this content: This story was produced with AI assistance within an editorial workflow developed by Wildlife Vagabond. Editorial responsibility remains with Wildlife Vagabond.How AI is used

Population & status

SPECIES IN THIS STORY

Species in this story

Yellow-wattled Lapwing Vanellus malabaricus Explore species

Independent research and conservation news archive

Did you find this information useful?

Wildlife Vagabond is independently built and maintained. Voluntary support helps cover source verification, hosting and continued work on research and conservation news.

Support Wildlife Vagabond

The news archive will remain freely available.