Scientific name: Tringa erythropus (Pallas, 1764)
Bird group: Waders
Field characters. 31 cm. Female slightly larger than male. Distinguishable from other waders by black plumage with small white spots on upperparts. In flight with conspicuous narrow white wedge on rump; underwing white. In winter upperparts ash-grey with white marks, supercilium white, eye-stripe dark grey, face and throat grey-white, and chest grey (with few streaks); rest of underparts white, faintly barred. Legs red or black; bill dark brown with dark red base during breeding-season; outside breeding-season, legs carrot-orange, bill horn-brown with orange base. Winter adult confusable with Redshank, but former is greyer, has different call, longer bill and legs; in flight without the white wing-bar of Common Redshank (but with some whitish markings), feet trailing well beyond tail. Often mingles with Redshank and Common Greenshank.
Voice. Has a distinctive call when flushed and in flight: a clear, quick "chueet". During breeding season it produces also a repeated chattering monosyllable "chit-chit-chit".
Distribution. Locally a fairly common breeder An uncommon winter visitor, but fairly common as passage migrant.
Habitat. Less marine than relatives; outside the breeding season, occurs on mudflats along the coast, but can be found also on inland borders of freshwater bodies. Breeds in low Arctic, on wooded and open tundra, typically near trees.
Food. Chiefly insects, but also some crustaceans, molluscs and occasionally fishes and frogs. Rapid moving prey is caught by running in pursuit; main feeding method is jabbing forward to ground. When foraging, swims readily; when wading, sometimes seen up-ending like a duck.