Red-necked Phalarope

Description:

Small brightly coloured pharalope 16-20cm. A very elegant looking bird in summer plumage. Essentially grey and white with a rust-red coloured collar running from the upper breast up behind the eye. A contrasting white throat patch and small eye white stripe above the eye and creamy yellow bands on the mantle.

Habitat:

These birds found on the Commander Islands in the Bering Sea in Far East Russia. It was in coastal salt marsh on the edge of the tundra. See last image.

Notes:

These are among my favorite birds. They are so small and delicate and yet live in some of the harshest conditions on the planet. Winters are spent out at sea and summer in coastal environments at high latitudes. In winter plumage the birds look quite pale and washed out of colour. In this species the female is generally more brightly coloured than the male in summer.