Common Redshank

The common redshank is a wader with bright red legs and a black-tipped red bill. In breeding plumage it is marbled brown, slightly paler below; in winter it becomes plainer greyish-brown above and whitish below. In flight it shows white up the back and a broad white trailing edge to the wing. The spotted redshank of the Arctic has a longer bill and legs and is almost black in breeding plumage. The common redshank's closest relatives are the marsh and wood sandpipers (Wikipedia, general species account).

It breeds across temperate Eurasia in almost any wetland, from damp meadows to saltmarsh, often at high density, laying three to five eggs. It is a wary, noisy bird whose loud, piping alarm call alerts other birds. It is migratory, wintering on coasts around the Mediterranean, along Europe's Atlantic seaboard and in South Asia. In India it is a winter migrant with a large range. SoIB 2023 estimates a long-term decline of about 65% and a current fall of about 4% a year, and rates it a High conservation priority (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).