A mid-sized, yellow-legged shorebird; rare visitor to North America. Alternate Adult is brown and rufous overall with densely spotted head and breast, spotted flanks, whitish supercilium, white belly, brown wings edged in rufous, yellow legs, and relatively short, slightly drooping bill. Basic Adult is similar but less crisply marked, with buffy wash on mostly unstreaked breast. Juvenile has bright orange-buffy wash on sparsely streaked breast, remainder of underparts clean white, bright rufous-edged wing feathers, and bright reddish cap, which contrasts sharply with white supercilium. In flight, note dark center stripe on tail and lack of white markings in wings. Superficially similar juvenile Pectoral Sandpiper has a duller reddish-brown crown with some dark streaking, a less conspicuous supercilium, a slightly longer, decurved bill, and always has streaking across the entire breast.

Length: 22 (cm) Wingspan: 46 (cm)

Habitat:

Vegetated mudflats and marshes. Breeds on wet tundra.

Behavior:

Sometimes flocks with other shorebirds, including Pectoral Sandpiper. Nest is a cup of grasses among dense vegetation.

Feeding:

Forages among wet vegetation and mud, probing with bill or visually pursuing prey. Eats insects and other small aquatic invertebrates.