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Marsh Sandpiper

Marsh Sandpiper

Tringa stagnatilis

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The Marsh Sandpiper is a small, very slender shank that breeds on open steppe and taiga wetlands from eastern Europe to the Russian Far East and winters mainly in Africa and South Asia. It looks like a dainty Greenshank, with a long, needle-fine bill, very long greenish-yellow legs and a white wedge up the back in flight.

Did you know?

  • Despite its Greenshank-like look, it is more closely related to the Redshank and Wood Sandpiper.
  • Its name stagnatilis comes from the Latin for “swamp”.

About the species

Identification

A slender, small shank that resembles a miniature Greenshank; mottled grey-brown in summer and paler in winter. In flight a white wedge shows on the back; the legs are greenish and very long, and the bill long, thin and straight. In flight the legs project well beyond the tail.

Family

Scolopacidae

Size

Medium (thrush)

Colours

grey, white, brown, black, green

About the habitat

Breeds around shallow ponds and wet grassy flats in steppe and taiga; on migration and in winter marshes, lagoons, rice fields and flooded meadows.

Diet

Mainly small aquatic invertebrates such as insect larvae, worms and tiny crustaceans, picked or delicately probed from shallow water and mud.

Behaviour

A long-distance migrant that forages by wading briskly in shallow fresh water, picking and probing with precise movements. It is usually seen singly or in small groups and takes off readily with a clear whistle.

Sources

Photo: JJ Harrison (https://www.jjharrison.com.au/), CC BY-SA 3.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tringa stagnatilis 2 - Laem Pak Bia.jpg

Text: Wikipedia (English) + FinBIF species descriptions + Wikipedia (Finnish), CC BY-SA 4.0; FinBIF: CC BY 4.0; Wikipedia: CC BY-SA 4.0 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marsh_sandpiper

See also