Tringa totanus

• Overview
• Interesting Facts
• Common Names
• Description
• Biology
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Overview

Interesting Facts

Common Names

Click on the language to view common names.

Description

Physical Description

Habitat

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 5,239 meters (0 to 17,188 feet).[1]

Ecology: Behaviour Most populations of this species are fully migratory and travel on a broad front over land and along coasts, some Icelandic and Western European populations remaining close to their breeding grounds1. It breeds from March to August2 in solitarily pairs or in loose colonies1, 2, departing the breeding grounds from June to October, and returning from the wintering grounds again between February and April2. Outside of the breeding season the species forages singly, in small groups1 or occasionally in larger flocks of up to c.1,000 individuals5 especially at roosting sites2 or when feeding on fish1. Habitat Breeding The species breeds on coastal saltmarshes, inland wet grasslands with short swards1 (including cultivated meadows)3, grassy marshes, swampy heathlands1 and swampy moors3. Non-breeding On passage the species may frequent inland flooded grasslands1 and the silty shores of rivers and lakes4, but during the winter it is largely coastal1, occupying rocky, muddy and sandy beaches, saltmarshes, tidal mudflats , saline and freshwater coastal lagoons1, tidal estuaries3, saltworks and sewage farms1. Diet Breeding When breeding its diet consists of insects, spiders and annelid worms1. Non-breeding During the non-breeding season the species takes insects, spiders and annelid worms1, as well as molluscs , crustaceans (especially amphipods e.g. Corophium spp. )1 and occasionally small fish and tadpoles1. Breeding site The nest s a shallow scrape or hollow5 on a hummock or at the base of a tuft4 of grass1, often well hidden by overhanging leaves1. The species usually nests solitarily inland (less than 10 pairs/km2) but in loosely colonial groups (up to 100-300 pairs/km2) on the coast1. Management information Optimal breeding conditions for this species may be provided by creating a mosaic of unflooded grassland, winter-flooded grassland and shallow pools9. Winter flooding of grasslands is beneficial to the species as it helps to keep the sward height short and open and also creates pools which provide a source of aquatic invertebrates in the spring9, 13. Such shallow pools on coastal grazing marshes should be maintained until the end of June16. The number of breeding pairs on improved grassland was successfully increased on a reserve in Wales by the implementation of a two-year rotation of chisel ploughing, as well as a seasonal sheep and cattle grazing regime and a controlled increase in the water-level14. At Lower Lough Erne in Northern Ireland the breeding population of the species increased considerably as a result of cutting rush beds in mid-winter (although the species nested on uncut areas, chicks benefited from the presence of adjacent short, open areas for feeding)15. Low-level grazing of salt marshes (e.g. c.1 cow per hectare ) does not appear to affect the species and may even be beneficial to breeding populations19, 20, although cattle should not be put onto the marsh until towards the end of the nesting season (e.g. late-May or early-June) to minimise the risk of nest trampling19. There is also evidence that too heavy grazing can be detrimental18. The species is known to show increased hatching success when ground predators have been excluded by erecting protective fences around nesting areas8, and in the UK there is evidence that the removal of Spartina anglica from tidal mudflats using a herbicide is beneficial for the species18. (Ref. 311769).

List of Habitats :

•     5     Wetlands (inland)   
  
•     5.5     Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha)   
  
•     5.7     Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha)   
  
•     9     Marine Neritic   
  
•     9.10     Marine Neritic - Estuaries   
  
•     12     Marine Intertidal   
  
•     12.4     Marine Intertidal - Mud Flats and Salt Flats   
  
•     12.5     Marine Intertidal - Salt Marshes (Emergent Grasses)   
  
•     13     Marine Coastal/Supratidal   
  
•     13.4     Marine Coastal/Supratidal - Coastal Brackish/Saline Lagoons/Marine Lakes   
  
•     13.5     Marine Coastal/Supratidal - Coastal Freshwater Lakes   
  
•     14     Artificial/Terrestrial   
  
•     14.2     Artificial/Terrestrial - Pastureland   
[more info]

Biology

Migration

Migratory

Taxonomy

Synonyms

Tringa totanus (Linnaeus) • Tringa totanus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Last scrutiny: 24-Jun-1996

Similar Species

Spotted Redshank

Members of the genus Tringa

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 19 species and subspecies in this genus:

T. brevipes (Gray-Tailed Tattler) · T. cinerea (Terek Sandpiper) · T. erythropus (Spotted Redshank) · T. flavipes (Lesser Long-Legged Tattler) · T. glareola (Wood Sandpiper) · T. guttifer (NordmannÌs Greenshank) · T. hypoleucos (Common Sandpiper) · T. hypoleucos hypoleucos (Common Sandpiper) · T. incana (Wandering Tattler) · T. macularia (Spotted Sandpiper) · T. melanoleuca (Big Yellow-Legged Plover) · T. nebularia (Common Greenshank) · T. ochropus (Green Sandpiper) · T. solitaria (American Green Sandpiper) · T. solitaria cinnamomea (Solitary Sandpiper) · T. solitaria solitaria (Solitary Sandpiper) · T. stagnatilis (Marsh Sandpiper) · T. totanus (Common Sandpiper) · T. totanus totanus (Common Sandpiper)

More Info

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Further Reading

• A hand-list of British birds, with an account of the distribution of each species in the British Isles and abroad. By Ernst Hartert, F. C. R. Jourdain, N. F. Ticehurst and H. F. Withersby. London, Witherby, 1912. url p. 182.
• A handbook to the vertebrate fauna of north Wales. London, Witherby & Co., 1919. url p. 66.
• A history of British birds, with coloured illustrations of their eggs. By Henry Seebohm. .. London, Pub. for the author by R.H. Porter [etc.]1883-85. url p. 107.
• A history of the birds of Europe: including all the species inhabiting the western palaearctic region / London: Published by the Author, 1871-1881. url p. 157, p. 165.
• An ecological characterization of Coastal Maine (north and east of Cape Elizabeth) / Stewart I. Fefer and Patricia S. Schettig: principal investigators. Newton Corner, Mass.: Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Northeast Region, 1980. url p. 138, p. 99.
• An environmental profile of the Black Sea Coast WCMC url p. 34.
• Ardea. Amsterdam, etc., Nederlandse Ornithlogische Unie, etc. url p. 78.
• Biosphere Reserves, Compilation 4, October 1986: programme on man and the biosphere (MAB) IUCN Conservation Monitoring Centre url p. 209, p. 239.
• Biosphere Reserves, Compilation 5, October 1990: programme on man and the biosphere (MAB) IUCN url p. 123.
• British birds. London, Witherby & Co. url , , , p. 100, p. 112, p. 112, p. 12, p. 12, p. 186, p. 193, p. 20, p. 213, p. 242, p. 274, p. 284, p. 308, p. 314, p. 314, p. 338, p. 338, p. 45, p. 55, p. 58, p. 86.
• British birds: descriptions of all the commoner species, their nests, and eggs / by F.B. Kirkman; illustrations by A.W. Seaby. London: Dodge Pub. Co., [1913] url p. 67.
• Bulletin - United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.];1877-1971. url p. 234, p. 260, p. 36.
• Bulletin / Peabody Museum of Natural History. 1972 New Haven: Peabody Museum of Natural History, url fig. 21.
• Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History). London: The Museum, 1950-1977. url p. 203, p. 215, p. 216, p. 219, p. 224, p. 230.
• Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College. Cambridge, Mass.: The Museum, 1863- url p. 271, p. 620.
• Bulletin of the Southern California Academy of Sciences Los Angeles, Calif.: The Academy, 1971- url p. 106.
• Catalogue of the Birds in the British Museum. London, 1874-98. url p. 411.
• Check-list and bibliography on the occurrence of insects in birds' nests. Ames, Iowa State College Press[1959] url p. 279, p. 303, p. 373.
• Check-list of North American birds: the species of birds of North America from the Arctic through Panama, including the West Indies and Hawaiian Islands / prepared by the Committee on Classification and Nomenclature of the American Orni Lawrence, Kan.: American Ornithologists' Union, 1983. url p. 178, p. 781.
• Check-list of birds of the world. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1931-1987. url p. 265.
• Coastal Sensitivity Overview of the Strait of Malacca. Compiled for International Maritime Organisation (IMO) IMO url , , , , , , , .
• Directory of Wetlands of International Importance. IUCN url p. 167, p. 188, p. 191, p. 192, p. 213, p. 214, p. 226, p. 227, p. 233, p. 236, p. 248, p. 250, p. 272, p. 285, p. 287, p. 288, p. 292, p. 298, p. 333, p. 335, p. 348, p. 360, p. 373, p. 375, p. 391, p. 425, p. 434, p. 437, p. 446, p. 451, p. 452, p. 458, p. 462, p. 512, p. 526, p. 527, p. 529, p. 537, p. 558, p. 563, p. 580, p. 582, p. 586, p. 588, p. 590, p. 592, p. 597, p. 624, p. 638, p. 665, p. 669, p. 679, p. 681, p. 685, p. 693, p. 696, p. 698, p. 700, p. 701, p. 705, p. 75, p. 750, p. 781.
• Fleas, flukes & cuckoos; a study of bird parasites, by Miriam Rothschild and Theresa Clay. New York, Macmillan, 1957. url p. 293, p. 305.
• IUCN Directory of Protected Areas in Oceania IUCN url p. 237, p. 447.
• IUCN Directory of South Asian Protected Areas IUCN url p. 124, p. 293.
• Ibis. [London]Published for the British Ornithologists' Union by Academic Press. url p. 162, p. 168, p. 192, p. 224, p. 225, p. 257, p. 321, p. 503, p. 511, p. 607, p. 710.
• Journal of ethnobiology. 21 2001 Flagstaff, Ariz.: Center for Western Studies, 1981- url p. 140, p. 173.
• MAB Biosphere Reserves: Site Descriptions, post compilation 5 (October 1990) UNESCO MAB Programme url .
• Mangroves of Western and Central Africa. UNEP-WCMC Biodiversity Series 26 UNEP-WCMC, UNEP url p. 25, p. 41.
• Memoirs of the San Diego Society of Natural History. 3 1968 San Diego, Calif.: The Society, 1931-1989. url figs. 10-11, page 18, fig. 13, page 20, p. 48.
• Nature Reserves of the Himalaya and the Mountains of Central Asia IUCN url p. 107, p. 15, p. 276, p. 471, p. 92, p. 94.
• Optimality, constraints, and hierarchies in the analysis of foraging strategies / 1983. url .
• Postilla. 1951 New Haven, Conn.: Peabody Museum of Natural History, [1950?]-c2004. url p. 3, p. 4, p. 4.
• Proceedings of the United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.] url p. 310, p. 573.
• Protected Landscapes: experience around the world. Prepared for the International Symposium on Protected Landscapes, Grange-over-Sands, England 5-10 October 1987 IUCN url p. 177.
• Reports and transactions. Cardiff [etc. url p. 55.
• Smithsonian miscellaneous collections. 151 1966 Washington: Smithsonian Institution, 1862-1968. url p. 18.
• Special scientific report--wildlife / U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service. Washington, D.C.: The Service, 1949- url p. 115, p. 118, p. 134, p. 218, p. 291, p. 293, p. 295, p. 298, p. 318, p. 321, p. 334, p. 336, p. 359, p. 371, p. 382, p. 394, p. 437, p. 447, p. 484, p. 595, p. 596, p. 640, p. 643, p. 680, p. 79, p. 90.
• Temporal and social aspects of the foraging ecology of a piscivore, the osprey (Pandion haliaetus) / by Thomas C. Edwards, Jr. 1987. url p. 95.
• The Auk. Washington, D.C.: American Ornithologists' Union, etc., 1884- url p. 512.
• The British nature book; a complete handbook and guide to British nature study, embracing the mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, insects, plants, etc., in the United Kingdom, by S.N. Sedgwick. .. Edinburgh, T.C. & E.C. Jack, Ltd., 1922. url p. 63.
• The Canadian field-naturalist. Ottawa, Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club. url p. 429, p. 431, p. 615, p. 90.
• The Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. Bombay: The Society, url p. 865, p. 878.
• The Scottish naturalist. Arbroath [etc.]T. Buncle & Co. [etc.] url , p. 136, p. 137, p. 195, p. 227.
• The geographical distribution of the family Charadriidae, or the plovers, sandpipers, snipes, and their allies / London; H. Sotheran & Co., [1888] url p. 353, p. 374.
• The natural history of the USSR / Algirdas Knystautas; foreword by Vladimir Flint; [translation, John S. Scott]. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1987. url p. 199.
• Transactions of the San Diego Society of Natural History. 17 1972 [San Diego]: The Society, 1905-1989. url p. 64.
• University of Kansas publications, Museum of Natural History. 17 Lawrence, University of Kansas. url p. 639.
• Vertebrate life / Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, c1996. url p. 565, p. 592, p. 790.

Notes

Contributors

• BirdLife International 2009. Tringa totanus. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloadedon 05February2012.
• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 10, 2012.
• IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. . Downloaded on January 28, 2012.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 27, 2007:

• Biologiezentrum der Oberoesterreichischen Landesmuseen, Biologiezentrum Linz
• Canadian Biodiversity Information Facility, Provincial Museum of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada. Birds
• European Environment Agency, EUNIS
• Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, Terrestrial vertebrate specimens
• The Danish Biodiversity Information Facility, Western Palearctic migrants in continental Africa
• UK National Biodiversity Network, Environment and Heritage Service - EHS Species Datasets
• UK National Biodiversity Network, RSPB - Wader breeding survey in the Broads ESA in 1995
• UK National Biodiversity Network, Scottish Borders Biological Records Centre - SWT Scottish Borders Local Wildlife Site Survey data 1996-2000 - species information
• University of Michigan Museum of Zoology
• , Bird specimens
• Upper Silesian Museum, Bytom, Upper Silesian Museum, Bird Observations

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 8124
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: ITS-176623
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 2481685
• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 176622
• IUCN ID: 247163
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 142476

Footnotes

1. Mean = 571.780 meters (1,875.919 feet), Standard Deviation = 862.300 based on 37,160 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]

©2004-2012 David Stang. All rights reserved.