Eurasian curlew

Numenius arquata

Photo by Jari Peltomäki (Luonto Portti)

Common name:
Eurasian curlew (en); maçarico-real (pt); courlis cendré (fr); zarapito real (es); große brachvogel (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Charadriiformes
Family Scolopacidae

Range:
This species breeds from France and Ireland to northern Scandinavia and east, through Eastern Europe and Russia as far as northern Kazakhstan, northern Mongolia and north-eastern China. Most population migrate to winter along the coasts of western and southern Europe, along the coasts of southern Asia, China, southern Japan and Indonesia, along all the coasts of Africa and also inland in Africa, in large wetlands in the Sahel, the Rift Valley and the Okawango river basin.

Size:
These large waders are 50-60 cm long and have a wingspan of 90-105 cm. They weigh 410-1.360 g.

Habitat:
The Eurasian curlew breeds in upland moors, peat bogs, swampy and dry heathlands, fens, open grassy or boggy areas in forests, damp grasslands, meadows, non-intensive farmland in river valleys, dune valleys and coastal marshlands. Outside the breeding season they are found in muddy coasts, bays and estuaries with tidal mudflats and sandflats, rocky and sandy beaches with many pools, mangroves, saltmarshes, coastal meadows, wet grasslands, arable land, and muddy shores of coastal lagoons, inland lakes and rivers.

Diet:
On the breeding grounds they mainly eat insects and their larvae, especially grasshoppers and beetles, but also ants, crane flies, earwigs, flies and moths. They also eat earthworms, and occasionally freshwater crustaceans, amphibians, lizards, chicks and small mammals, and sometimes fruits and other plant material. Outside the breeding season they prey on polychaete worms, molluscs, crabs, shrimps and amphipods, as well as earthworms, insects and spiders, small fishes, amphibians, chicks and eggs of other birds, small mammals and, very occasionally, seeds.

Breeding:
Eurasian curlews breed in April-July. They nest on a large depression in the ground, lined with dry grass and a few feathers, often situated on a tussock or low hummock, among grass or crops, or completely exposed. There the female lays 3-6 light greenish eggs with light brown spots, which are incubated by both sexes for 27-29 days. The chicks are precocial and leave the nest soon after hatching being able to feed themselves. They rely on both parents for protection against predators and adverse weather and fledge 32-38 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - NT (Near-Threatened)
This species has a very large breeding range and a global population roughly estimated at 77.000-1.065.000 individuals. The more southern breeding populations have declined on average by 30% in recent decades, but the trend for the more northern population is uncertain and may compensate these declines in the south. The main threat affecting the Eurasian curlew is habitat destruction and fragmentation, as a result of afforestation and agricultural intensification and improvement. Conversely, populations in the central Asian steppes have declined following abandonment of farmland and subsequent increases in the height of vegetation, rendering large areas unsuitable for nesting. The species is also threatened by the degradation of migratory staging areas and wintering areas, owing to land reclamation, pollution, human disturbance, reduced river flows and, in some areas, due to hunting pressure.

African snipe

Gallinago nigripennis

Photo by Ronald Bontrop (Biodiversity4all)

Common name:
African snipe (en); narceja-africana (pt); bécassine africaine (fr); agachadiza africana (es); Afrikanische bekassine (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Charadriiformes
Family Scolopacidae

Range:
This species has scattered breeding populations along eastern and southern Africa, in Ethiopia, Kenya, Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa, but can winter over all the regions between these breeding areas.

Size:
African snipes are 30-32 cm long and weigh 105-145 g.

Habitat:
These birds are found in fresh water or brackish wetlands, such as vleis, marshes, highland bogs, wetlands around artificial water bodies, ditches, inland deltas, shallow estuaries and lagoons, swampy lake edges, seasonally flooded grasslands and wet moorlands. They are mostly found at altitudes of 1.500-4.000 m, but can be found on lowland wetlands.

Diet:
They feed by probing soft mud with their long bill, taking worms, insect larvae, small molluscs, crustaceans and seeds.

Breeding:
African snipes can breed all year round. They are monogamous, solitary nesters and the nest is built by the female, consisting of a saucer-shaped grass structure placed in a tuft of grass or rushes. There she lays 1-3 eggs, which are incubated for 19-21 days. The chicks are cared for by both parents, fledging 19-20 days after hatching and probably becoming fully independent soon afterwards.

Conservation:
IUCN status -LC (Least Concern)
This species has a large but scattered breeding range. The population trend is difficult to determine because of uncertainty over the impacts of habitat modification on population sizes. The main threats are habitat loss and degradation through agricultural expansion, encroachment, overgrazing, burning and the drainage of wetlands. Extreme draughts and outbreaks of avian botulism may also pose a threat to this species. Despite theses, overall the African snipe is not considered threatened at present.

Sanderling

Calidris alba

(Photo from Wikipedia)

Common name:
sanderling (en); pilrito-das-praias (pt); bécasseau sanderling (fr); correlimos tridáctilo (es); sanderling (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Charadriiformes
Family Scolopacidae

Range:
The sanderling breeds in the Arctic region, in northern Russia, northern Alaska, northern Canada and Greenland, migrating south to winter along the coastlines of all continents except Antarctica.

Size:
These birds are 18-22 cm long and have a wingspan of 35-45 cm. They weigh 40-100 g.

Habitat:
Sanderlings breed in the tundra, both in barren stony areas and in areas of sparse vegetation such as willows, sedges, heathers and saxifrage. Outside the breeding season they are mostly found in sandy beaches, but also in rocky intertidal areas, mudflats and lagoons.

Diet:
During the breeding season they mainly eat insects, such as craneflies, midges and mosquitoes, and also some spiders, crustaceans and even plant materials. Outside the breeding season they feed on  small crustaceans, bivalves, polychaete worms and some insects.

Breeding:
Sanderlings breed in June-August. The mating system is very flexible, varying from monogamy to serial polygyny, polyandry and polygynandry. The nest is a scrape on the ground in an open area, sometimes lined with leaves and lichens. There the female lays 4 greenish eggs with brown spots, which are incubated for 23-32 days. The chicks leave the nest soon after hatching and are lead by one of the parents for a few weeks. They fledge 12-14 days after hatching and become independent 1 week later. Females may lay a second clutch while the male takes care of the chicks from her first clutch. Sanderlings reach sexual maturity at 2 years of age.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and the global population is estimated at 620.000-700.000 individuals. The overall population trend is uncertain, as some populations are decreasing, while others are increasing, stable or have unknown trends.

Ruddy turnstone

Arenaria interpres

(Photo from Purple "O" Purple)

Common name:

ruddy turnstone (en); rola-do-mar (pt); tournepierre à collier (fr); vuelvepiedras común (es); steinwälzer (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Charadriiformes

Family Scolopacidae

Range:

Ruddy turnstones breed in the high latitudes of the northern hemisphere, from Alaska, through the Canadian Arctic and Greenland, and into Scandinavia and northern Russia. They migrate south to winter along the coasts of all continents except Antarctica.

Size:

These birds are 21-26 cm long and have a wingspan of 50-57 cm. They weigh 85-150 g.

Habitat:

They breed near the coast or up to several kilometres inland in the high Arctic, nesting on coastal plains, marshes and tundra and showing a preference for mosaics of bare rock, clay or shingle and vegetation near water or in areas that remain damp until late summer. During winter and migration they are found along rocky and shingle shores, breakwaters, sandy beaches with storm-racked seaweed, short-grass saltmarshes, sheltered inlets, estuaries, mangroves swamps, exposed reefs and mudflats with beds of molluscs.

Diet:

During the breeding season they mostly eat insects, including larval and adult Diptera, larval Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera, Coleoptera, but also spiders and, occasionally, also taking vegetable matter. Outside the breeding season they eat insects, crustaceans, molluscs, annelids, echinoderms, small fish, carrion and birds eggs.

Breeding:

Ruddy turnstones breed in May-August. They form monogamous pairs and nest is a shallow scrape on the ground, lined with a small amount of vegetation, often located on a slight ridge or hummock. There the female lays 4 green-brown eggs with dark brown markings, which she mostly incubates alone for 22-24 days. The chicks are able to leave the nest and feed themselves within a day of hatching, but the adults will brood them and defend them from predators until they fledge, 19-21 days after hatching.

Conservation:

IUCN - LC (Least concern)

This species has a very large breeding range and a global population estimated at 460.000-800.000 individuals. The overall population trend is decreasing, although some populations have unknown trends, and in North America the trend is increasing. They are known to suffer nest predation from feral American mink Neovison vison in some regions but overall the ruddy turnstone is not considered threatened.