Medium large. Moderately long slightly upcurved bill, long legs. Sexes alike.
Adults: Breeding: Head, neck and breast, white, streaked with dark brown. Eyering, white. Eye, dark brown. Back, scapulars, and wing coverts, brownish-grey mottled with dark brown, buff and white. Lower back, rump, and uppertail coverts, white. Tail, white and finely barred with dark brown. Bend of wing, outer primaries, almost black. Inner primaries, secondaries, becoming brownish-grey. Throat, belly, undertail coverts, and underwing, white with sparse, dark brown 'V' bars. Bill, black at tip grading to greenish-grey at the base. Legs, greyish-green to yellowish. Non-breeding: Similar but with short, white eyebrow. Streaking confined to upperparts, sides of face and neck. Breast, underparts, white.
Immatures: Browner than adult but with paler edges to feathers on upperparts.
Other Names (World)
Common Greenshank, Greenshank, Greater Greenshank, Large Tringine Sandpiper, Cinereous Godwit
Family
Scolopacidae (Sandpipers, Snipes, Phalaropes)
Afghanistan (P), Albania (NB), Algeria, Angola, Armenia, Australia, Austria (P), Azerbaijan (NB), Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus (B), Belgium (NB), Benin, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, British Indian Ocean Territory, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria (NB), Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, China (mainland), Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Comoros, Congo [The Democratic Republic of the], Congo [The Democratic Republic of the], Côte dIvoire, Croatia (Local Name: Hrvatska) (P), Cyprus (NB) (P), Czech Republic, Denmark (P), Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia (B), Ethiopia, Finland (B) (P), France (NB) (P), French Southern Territories, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany (B) (P), Ghana, Greece (NB) (P), Guam (NB), Guinea, Guinea-bissau, Hong Kong (China) (NB), Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran [Islamic Republic of], Iraq (NB) (P), Ireland (B) (NB) (P), Israel, Italy (NB) (P), Japan, Jordan (P), Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia (B), Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Macedonia [The Former Yugoslav Republic of] (NB), Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia (NB), Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mayotte, Micronesia [Federated States of] (NB), Moldova [Republic of] (P), Mongolia, Montenegro (NB), Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands Antilles (NB), New Zealand, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Northern Mariana Islands (NB), Norway (B) (P), Oman (NB), Pakistan, Palau (NB), Papua New Guinea, Philippines (NB), Poland (P), Portugal (NB), Qatar, Réunion, Romania (P), Russia (Asian) (B), Russia (Central Asian) (B) (P), Russia (European) (B) (NB) (P), Rwanda, Sâo Tomé e Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia (NB), Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia (Slovak Republic) (NB), Slovenia (NB) (P), Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain (NB), Sri Lanka, Sudan, Swaziland, Sweden (B) (P), Switzerland, Syrian Arab Republic, Taiwan (China), Tajikistan, Tanzania [United Republic of], Thailand, Timor-Leste (NB) (P), Togo, Tunisia, Turkey (NB), Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine (B) (NB) (P), United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom (B) (NB) (P), USA (NB), Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Western Sahara, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe.
Vagrant to Barbados, Bermuda, Faroe Islands, Iceland, New Caledonia, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago.
Northern Scotland and Scandinavia east through central Asia to eastern Siberia and Kamchatka. Winters from western Europe through Mediterranean to Africa, and east through Middle East to southern Asia, Indonesia and Australasia.
Breeds across northern Europe and Asia, migrates the Mediterranean across southern Asia to New Guinea and Australia.
Rarity Status
Currently this species is not classified as a rarity in this country OR information has not been updated.
Population
Estimated population is 440,000 - 1,500,000 (2010).
Status LC
In the region of the Yellow Sea degradation and loss of its preferred wetland habitats through environmental pollution, reduced river flows and human disturbance is the main threat.
Common Greenshank (Tringa nebularia) [XC766596]
by Irish Wildlife Sounds from Carne, Wexford, County Wexford, Ireland (flight call)
Common Greenshank (Tringa nebularia) [XC766612]
by Irish Wildlife Sounds from Carne, Wexford, County Wexford, Ireland (flight call)
Breeding Season (Guide)
Does not breed in Australia. Breeds May - August in northern hemisphere.
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Nest
A shallow depression on the ground, near a rock or tussock, sparsely lined.
Eggs (Guide)
3 - 4, rarely more unless more than one female is laying in the nest; smooth and glossy, pale buff to red-ochre, with markings ranging from bold blotches and streaks of brown to fine streaks and irregular marks; oval to pyriform; about 51 x 35 mm. Incubation: 23 - 26 days; by both sexes.
Young
Fledge in 26 - 31 days.
Subspecies
Possible subspecies glottoides proposed for eastern populations, on grounds of larger size range and details of non-breeding plumage.
No subspecies.
Similar Species
Marsh Sandpiper (Tringa stagnatilis)
Smaller. Non-breeding with non-breeding. Has a straight needle-like, black bill. Whiter on face, head and neck. Proportionally longer legs, yellow-green or grey-green, that protude further in flight.
Spotted Greenshank (Tringa guttifer)
Similar size. Non-breeding with non-breeding. Has a straighter and heavier bill, thicker at the base, yellowish-green on the basal half, slightly shorter. Legs, yellow to greenish or brownish yellow, and noticably shorter. Feet show partial webbing.
Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes)
Smaller. Non-breeding with non-breeding. Has a straight, short, thin, dark bill. Legs, yellow, but may have an orange tone.
The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9
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