The main habitat of this species are wadis and acacia scrub (Jennings 2010). It is also frequently found in well-vegetated parks, gardens and palm groves (Aspinall and Porter 2011). It feeds mostly on fruit, as well as on seeds and invertebrates and less frequently on nectar, leaves and flowers (Fishpool and Tobias 2005, Jennings 2010). Occasionally, it takes human food scraps and visits bird tables (Jennings 2010). Pairs establish a permanent bond. The breeding season can last from January to September, but peaks between March and April. There are hints that the species is double-brooded, but confirmation is still lacking (Jennings 2010). Clutches usually consist of less than three eggs, although occasionally four or five have been observed (Jennings 2010). The nest is a cup or small basket of thin twigs, grass stems, moss and leaves with the base constructed of broad leaves (sometimes with newspaper, strips of plastic or cotton wool) and the structure is held together by cobwebs and cotton threads, lined after a fashion with hair, shredded bark and rootlets, apparently sometimes unlined (Fishpool and Tobias 2005, Jennings 2010). It is placed in a bush or tree at least 2 m above ground (Jennings 2010).

The species occurs in parks and gardens, cultivations and date groves, as well as semi-desert and scrubland with good vegetation cover (Jennings 2010, Aspinall and Porter 2011). During migration, the species also occupies very arid places, but it generally avoids dry habitat during the breeding season, when it favours shaded, leafy areas with water readily available (Jennings 2010). It forages on the ground in leaf litter and under dense vegetation, where it takes mostly invertebrates and, especially during migration, also berries of Salvadora persica trees (Jennings 2010). The breeding season lasts from late spring to mid-summer (Jennings 2010). The nest is a loose flat cup of dry grass stems, twigs and bark, lined with fine fibres, hair and feathers. It is built in dense vegetation, often on the trunk of a date palm, on branches, in vines or in tree holes (Jennings 2010). It is possible that the species is double- or even triple-brooded (Jennings 2010).

This species occurs in wetlands like freshwater and brackish marshes, sewage treatment plants and irrigated grassland (Richardson 1990, Aspinall and Porter 2011). There is no information available about the species's diet in the UAE; elsewhere the diet varies seasonally depending on availability, and the species takes insects, worms, leeches, molluscs, crustaceans and occasionally fish, frogs, tadpoles, lizards, small snakes and nestling birds (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Hancock et al. 1992). It feeds in very shallow water in small flocks of up to 30 individuals (Brown et al. 1982, del Hoyo et al. 1992, Hancock et al. 1992). The species is migratory and breeds in mixed-species colonies throughout southern-central Eurasia (del Hoyo et al. 1992).

This species inhabits inland freshwater areas, like marshes, bogs, ditches, wet or irrigated grassland, occasionally creeks, but only rarely coastal areas and saltwater habitats (Richardson 1990, Jennings 2010, Aspinall and Porter 2011). Particularly the resident population is well adapted to humans and can be considered commensal; when feeding, it often visits human sites, including crop fields, livestock enclosures, rubbish dumps and gardens (Jennings 2010). Its diet consists primarily of insects and small reptiles (Jennings 2010). The species is a diurnal feeder (del Hoyo et al. 1992). It breeds colonially; in Dubai, the colony is shared with breeding Sacred Ibis Threskiornis aethiopicus (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Jennings 2010). The timing of the breeding season in eastern Arabia is not known; in general, the species may breed throughout the year with different regional peaks depending on food availability (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Kushlan and Hancock 2005). The nesting effort of the species is related to rainfall patterns, leading to an annual variation in productivity (Kushlan and Hancock 2005). The nest is constructed of sticks and positioned in a bush or tree, preferably acacia, tamarisk or ghaf (Jennings 2010). In Arabia, clutches contain two to three, seldom up to five eggs (Jennings 2010). Outside of the breeding season the species remains gregarious (Brown et al. 1982, del Hoyo et al. 1992).

This species occurs at large, shallow inland wetlands rich with fish (Richardson 1990, del Hoyo et al. 1992, Aspinall and Porter 2011). It frequents mainly rivers and creeks, marshes and lakes (Richardson 1990).;Outside of the breeding season, the species may feed solitarily or in small loose groups, although flocks of hundreds or more individuals may form where food is abundant (Brown et al. 1982, Marchant and Higgins 1990, del Hoyo et al. 1992). The species is a diurnal feeder, but is most active at dawn and dusk (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Kushlan and Hancock 2005). The species is migratory. Individuals wintering in or migrating through the UAE may breed in southern-central Asia. The timing of the breeding season varies geographically, but concentrates around spring and summer. The species typically breeds in colonies of tens, hundreds or even a thousand pairs, sometimes with other species (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Kushlan and Hancock 2005).

This species occurs along the coast, where it frequents sandbanks, lagoons and coastal breakwaters (Richardson 1990, Jennings 2010, Aspinall and Porter 2011). It is occasionally found at large inland lakes like dams, reservoirs and fish farms (Richardson 1990, Jennings 2010, Aspinall and Porter 2011). It feeds predominantly on fish, which it are caught by diving pursuits (del Hoyo et al. 1992, Jennings 2010). Birds wintering in the UAE may breed in Turkey, the southern Caspian region or southern Pakistan (Jennings 2010).

This species occurs on the open sea up to 50 km off the coast, and only comes to offshore islands or to the mainland for resting on sandy beaches (Jennings 2010, Aspinall and Porter 2011). It forages in small groups by plunge-diving or surface-dipping (Jennings 2010). There is no information available about its diet in the UAE; elsewhere, it feeds predominantly on small pelagic fish, but it will opportunistically take cephalopods, crustaceans, insects and hatchling turtles (Urban et al. 1986, del Hoyo et al. 1996, Higgins and Davies 1996). The species also preys on chicks of White-cheeked Tern Sterna repressa and Lesser Crested Tern Thalasseus bengalensis (Jennings 2010). The species breeds in spring to early summer; in the UAE, eggs have been recorded between May and June (Jennings 2010). It breeds on offshore islands in large dense colonies of up to 1,000 pairs, often associated with Lesser Crested Tern Thalasseus bengalensis and other tern species (Jennings 2010). The colonies are located on open, sandy areas (Jennings 2010). On Qarnayn;Island, the nesting habitat is in the soft sandy areas on the northwestern part of the island. A single egg is laid on the bare sand; only during incubation and nestling stage, a shallow scrape develops (Jennings 2010). Juveniles leave the nests a few days after hatching and form crèches along the shoreline (Jennings 2010). After the breeding season, individuals breeding off the UAE coast migrate south as far as the coast of Kenya, while birds from the northern Arabian Gulf may winter in the UAE (Jennings 2010).

This species is mainly coastal (Jennings 2010, Aspinall and Porter 2011). It inhabits sandy and rocky beaches, low sand dunes, salt and mud flats, as well as saline creeks on sheltered coasts (Richardson 1990, Jennings 2010). Occasionally, it can be found on wetlands inland, such as irrigated grasslands and marshes (Richardson 1990). Its diet in the UAE is not known; elsewhere in Arabia, the species feeds on crabs and other crustaceans, marine worms, molluscs and terrestrial invertebrates like ants, beetles and ticks (Jennings 2010). The species is migratory, and is likely to migrate without stopping on a broad front between breeding and non-breeding areas (del Hoyo et al. 1996). Individuals wintering in the UAE breed from the eastern Caspian region to eastern Kazakhstan (Jennings 2010). Migratory flocks form after the end of breeding between mid-June and early-August, and arrive in the wintering grounds between mid-July and November (adults and immature birds arriving before juveniles) (del Hoyo et al. 1996). The species is typically gregarious, feeding in flocks of 2-50 individuals, and sometimes congregating in groups of up to 1,000 individuals when roosting (Urban et al. 1986, del Hoyo et al. 1996). It often associates with other plovers like Lesser Sandplover Charadrius mongolus (Jennings 2010).

During the breeding season, this species inhabits preferably freshwater sites like gravelly river islands, sandy shores of lakes, brackish and freshwater ponds as well as sewage treatment plants, and is also found at pools in remote deserts and along streams in the mountains (Richardson 1990, Jennings 2010, Aspinall and Porter 2011). The preferred habitat of individuals overwintering in the UAE is not well known; but it may frequent more coastal areas like mudflats (Aspinall and Porter 2011). Migrants mainly occur in small flocks between February and April on their journey to the breeding grounds and between September and October on passage to the wintering grounds; they tend to stay further inland at temporary desert rain pools, while avoiding mudflats along the coast (Richardson 1990, Jennings 2010). Its diet consists mainly of terrestrial and aquatic invertebrates, which it takes from the water surface or wet ground, often near fish drying places or livestock enclosures (Jennings 2010). The breeding season lasts from March to July (Jennings 2010). The species is territorial and nests in open areas with patches of sand or shingle near streams and lagoons of freshwater, brackish water or irrigated lands (Jennings 2010). The nest consists of a shallow, unlined depression in gravel or bare ground, in which three to four eggs are laid (Jennings 2010).

This species occurs along coastal creeks, in tidal mudflats and along sandy, muddy and stony shores (Richardson 1990, Aspinall and Porter 2011). During migration, is also found further inland in marshes and larger water bodies (Richardson 1990). There is no information available about its diet in the UAE; elsewhere, the diet consists of small crustaceans, molluscs, polycheate worms, isopods, amphipods, insects (e.g. ants, beetles, flies and fly larvae) and millipedes (del Hoyo et al. 1996). The species is gregarious and often roosts communally in flocks of several hundred individuals close to its feeding areas (Hayman et al. 1986, Urban et al. 1986, del Hoyo et al. 1996). The species is migratory. Individuals wintering in the UAE or further south breed between April and June in solitary pairs or loose colonies along the Arctic coast and in the tundra of northern Eurasia (del Hoyo et al. 1996).