Overview
It is mainly greyish brown, with a white back and rump, and a long curved bill (longest in the adult female) with a kink rather than a smooth curve. It is generally wary.
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Bird
- Family
- Charadriidae
- Genus
- Numenius
- Species
- phaeopus
Habitat
Tundra, moorline, and coasts.
Diet
This species feeds by probing soft mud for small invertebrates and by picking small crabs and similar prey off the surface. Before migration, berries become an important part of their diet. It has also been observed taking insects, specifically blue tiger butterflies.
Behavior
It is fairly gregarious outside the breeding season. The usual call is a rippling whistle, prolonged into a trill for the song. The nest is a bare scrape on tundra or Arctic moorland. Three to five eggs are laid. Adults are very defensive of nesting area and will even attack humans who come too close.
Hunting
Near the end of the 19th century, hunting on their migration routes took a heavy toll on this bird's numbers; the population has since recovered.
Conservation Status
Listed as Least Concern by IUCN.