Dunlin
Calidris alpina
A common wading bird – a small sandpiper with a slightly down-curved black bill. In winter it is dull grey-brown above and white below, but what it lacks in color it makes up for in spectacle: Dunlins often gather in large, restless flocks that wheel over the shore in synchronized flight
- Habitat: Coastal mudflats and sandy beaches, especially estuary shores
- When to See: Very common in winter and on passage migration
- Diet / Food: Invertebrates such as worms, small molluscs and insects, probed from the mud with its long bill
- Length: 16–20 cm