[5] The Pacific golden plover is slimmer than the American species, has a shorter primary projection, and longer legs, and is usually yellower on the back.

[6][7] The breeding habitat of American golden plover is Arctic tundra in northern Canada (Baffin Island west to Yukon and northernmost British Columbia) and Alaska.

They follow an elliptical migration path; northbound birds pass through Central America from January to April[8][9] and stage in great numbers in places like Illinois before their final push north.

In fall, they take a more easterly route, flying mostly over the western Atlantic and Caribbean Sea to the wintering grounds in Patagonia.

It is a regular though scarce fall migrant in western Europe, with typically 20–25 sightings annually in Great Britain; spring records are much rarer.

[10] A comparison of dates and migratory patterns leads to the conclusion that Eskimo curlews and American golden plovers were the most likely shore birds to have attracted the attention of Christopher Columbus to the nearby Americas in early October 1492, after 65 days at sea out of sight of land.

[12] The American golden plover lays a clutch of four white to buff eggs that are heavily blotched with both black and brown spots.