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Spotted Redshank

Spotted Redshank

Tringa erythropus

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The Spotted Redshank is a tall, elegant wader that breeds in open, boggy taiga from northern Scandinavia to eastern Siberia and winters in western Europe, the Mediterranean, tropical Africa and southern Asia. In breeding plumage it is almost black with fine white spots – unique among the shanks – while in winter it is pale grey. It has long red legs, a long, fine bill with a red base and a white oval on the back in flight.

Did you know?

  • Its name erythropus means “red-footed” in Greek.
  • In breeding plumage it is almost black – unique among the Tringa waders.

Voice

Flight call

About the species

Identification

In breeding plumage it is very dark: almost black, with pale spots on the wings and back and a clearly white rump. The bill is long and thin with red at the base of the lower mandible; the legs are long, dark in summer and red in winter. Young and winter birds resemble Common Redshank but are longer-legged and longer-billed, have a clear white supercilium and lack the white trailing edge to the wing. The call is a sharp “tchew-it”.

Family

Scolopacidae

Size

Medium (thrush)

Colours

black, white, grey, red

About the habitat

Breeds on bogs, fens and pools in the northern taiga and forest-tundra; on migration and in winter estuaries, lagoons, tidal flats, flooded meadows and lake shores.

Diet

Aquatic insects and larvae, worms, small crustaceans and small fish, taken by picking, probing and sweeping the bill in shallow water.

Behaviour

Forages actively, often wading up to its belly or swimming, and sometimes feeds in groups driving fish. It nests on the ground in open, boggy taiga, laying four eggs; females leave soon after laying, and males care for the chicks. Its call is a sharp, clear “chew-it”.

Sources

Photo: Hari K Patibanda, CC BY 2.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Spottedredshankbreedingplumage2.jpg

Sound: Jochem Verweij, XC929268, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://xeno-canto.org/929268

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

See also