Red Knot (Calidris canutus) -> Purple Sandpiper (Calidris canutus) - BirdID's Bird Guide - Nord University

Species:

Red Knot (Calidris canutus)

Purple Sandpiper (Calidris maritima)

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Dunlin

Length (cm):

23-25

20-22

Wingspan (cm):

57-61

42-46

Weight (gram):

110-160

52-80

Size group:

Thrush-size

Main Texts:

Appearance:

Large, stocky Calidris. Easily identified when direct size-comparison with congeners possible. Elongated body shape and short legs. Bill robust, short and straight. Summer plumage: Upperparts speckled in brown and grey, underparts warm rufous brown, like Curlew Sandpiper. Legs dark. Winter- and juvenile plumage: Pale grey upperparts (scaly pattern in juveniles), and white belly. Legs greenish in both juveniles and winter-plumaged adults. Note pale grey rump and uniformly grey tail in flight. Wing-bars less prominent than in Sanderling.

Sound:

Most commonly heard migratory call, a short "kut" or "knot". Sometimes given in stuttering series. Song an undulating, nasal mewing "poooor-mee", or "po-hor-mee".

Contact call, song:

Error loading Flash for sound!
See sound file

Distribution:

Wikipedia: map (se also Xeno-canto below)

Ecology:

Birdlife ecology

Links:

Observation.org Latest observations

Video IBC

Image search Flickr NB! May give other species

Sound search at Xeno-canto

Featherbase

CC

CC-sounds:Stein Ø. Nilsen, XC317787. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/317787.

Appearance:

Robust, compact and dark wader, with relatively long and slightly curved bill. Mostly seen in winter at the coast where it prefers rocky surfaces as opposed to most other waders. In winter plumage the base of bill and legs are yellow, and the upperparts grey with dark markings. Breeds in high Arctic and mountains. Summer plumage darker than winter, with brown fringes/spots on back, and darker bill and legs. Similar wing and rump pattern to Dunlin, but appears overall darker. Tail extends beyond wing tips of resting birds. Flight patterns at wintering grounds straight and low.

Sound:

Contact call a hoarse and hard "weet". Sometimes in chattering series. Song quite varied with series of short, nasal, vibrating sounds, interspersed with drawn out, slower calls.

Contact call: