Appearance:

Slender and elegant harrier, with narrow wings and four "fingers". Adult male easily recognized by very pale grey and white plumage, with diagnostic wedge-shaped, black wing-tips (outermost primary grey). Female and immature birds often difficult to tell from Montagu's Harrier and Hen Harrier. Adult female differs from Montagu's by lack of dark band on upper wing, and by diffuse, sooty inner underwing. Pale bands do not reach wingpit, and under coverts are darker. Differs from female Hen Harrier by noticeably slimmer wings (both hand and arm) and only 4 fingers (but beware moulting Hen Harriers). Immature similar to Montagu's with unstreaked, rufous underparts. Differs in pale tips of inner primaries, and dark half-collar and pale "boa".

Sound:

Some calls similar to Montagu's and Hen Harrier, but display call quite diagnostic. A thin, vibrating trill "peerrrrrrrr".

Display call:

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

CC

CC-sound:Thijs Fijen, Licence,Link.

Appearance:

An energetic, small tringa wader. Most similar to Green Sandpiper. Differs by light underwings, larger white spots on back, diffuse border between speckled chest and white belly, narrower dark markings on tail and a supercilium that reaches behind eye. Plumage leaves an overall much paler impression than Green Sandpiper, particularly in flight.

Sound:

Totally different from Green Sandpiper. Flight call a soft, but explosive "whiff whiff" , sometimes with only one syllable. Display call similar to redshank but with only two accented beats; a fast melodious "dee-loo", repeated in cycles.

Song:

Distribution:

Xeno-canto: map

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