Whimbrel

Description:

The Whimbrel is one of the largest limicolous of the European fauna. Its plumage is simple, but it has a long down-curved bill which seems too large for such a small head. (Bill length: 6 to 9 cm). Smaller than the Eurasian Curlew (Numenius arquata), the small head shows blackish-brown crown with median longitudinal pale stripe from forehead to nape, and whitish eyebrows. The upperparts are dark brown, with pale streaks and spots. The rump is white, tapering into a point in the middle of the back. The uppertail coverts are white, barred with brown. The tail is grey, with almost white edges, and barred with dark brown.

Habitat:

The Whimbrel lives mainly on coasts, but also in tundra and peat bogs. It frequents the marshes of boreal, subarctic and subalpine areas, the forests of birches and the tundra close to the treeline, open mountain forests and river valleys. In migration, it may be found in wetlands, tidal areas, and dry or wet meadows. In spring, it prefers the heath lands where it can find berries, and the farmlands. In winter, it is found mainly in coasts, occurring on exposed reefs, muddy, rocky and sandy beaches, tidal areas and mudflats in mangroves.