Wood Sandpiper

The wood sandpiper is the smallest of the shanks, a group of mid-sized, long-legged waders. It looks like a longer-legged, more delicate green sandpiper, but has a shorter, finer bill, a brown back, longer yellowish legs and a smaller, less contrasting white rump patch. Its closest relatives are the common redshank and marsh sandpiper, which share its subdued, light brown breeding plumage with diffuse brownish spots on the breast and neck. It has no subspecies (Wikipedia, general species account).

It breeds in subarctic wetlands from Scotland east across Eurasia and migrates to Africa, South Asia and Australia for the winter, when it is usually found in and around fresh water rather than on coasts. Vagrants have reached as far as Hawaii, and a small breeding population became established in Scotland from the 1950s. In India it is a winter migrant with a very large range. SoIB 2023 finds a current decline of about 3% a year and rates it a Moderate conservation priority (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).