Green Sandpiper (Tringa ochropus)

OTHER NAMES: N/A
Latin Etymology: Tringa (bird named by Aristotle) ochropus ("pale yellow foot")

Adult Green Sandpiper (Tringa ochropus) at Rainham Marshes, London - May 2010

Featured Subspecies: N/A
Weight: 71g  /  Length: 22cm  /  Wingspan: 57-61cm

UK AMBER LIST / IUCN Red List: Least Concern

Britain's second most common "named" sandpiper after the aptly named common one. It is primarily a Winter visitor although one or two are apparently present in the Summer. I've seen it most at the muddy edges of marshland lagoons and pools, during passage which means I can't really give any concrete sites for seeing them. To differentiate them from Common Sandpiper, note how the white chest stops fairly sharply rather than continuing up around the shoulders.  Green sandpipers do have greenish legs, but why that particular fairly difficult to observe feature was chosen to name them I have no idea.

Related Species:
Order: Charadriiformes
Family: Scolopacidae
Genus: Tringa
Subspecies: none - monotypic

- Sighting Locations -

UNITED KINGDOM - Very rare breeding resident (1-2 pairs) and scarce Wintering Visitor (910 birds)

 - Birds seen at Rutland Water and Rainham Marshes

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto