Green Sandpiper
| Irish Name: | Gobadán glas |
| Scientific name: | Tringa ochropus |
| Bird Family: | Waders |
green
Conservation status
Conservation status
Status
Scarce passage migrant and winter visitor to wetlands.
Identification
Slightly larger and very similar to Common Sandpiper. Adult birds have a dark head and upperparts, contrasting markedly with the white belly. The legs are a pale green, while the bill is a dark grey-green. In flight, the most obvious feature is the large white rump contrasting with the dark wings and tail. Juvenile Green Sandpipers are very similar to adults, though can be identified by having the upperparts finely spotted white.
Voice
The flight call is loud "chu-wit-wit".
Diet
Feeds mostly on invertebrates in mudflats.
Breeding
Does not breed in Ireland. Passage or wintering Green Sandpipers breed in bogs and marshes from Central Europe and Scandinavia east across Asia. Passage birds feed in freshwater wetlands, such as the edges of lakes, ponds, rivers and even streams and ditches. Rarely seen at coastal estuaries.
Wintering
Small numbers winter in southern and eastern counties.
Monitored by
Winters mainly in Mediterranean region and Africa. Some early Winter records from the Southern half of Ireland.
Mainly a passage migrant. Spends Summer in Scandinavia.
