Greater Yellowlegs

Tringa melanoleuca (Gmelin, JF, 1789)

Greater Yellowlegs, Tringa melanoleuca, is a shorebird of the family Scolopacidae that breeds in North America, mainly in the temperate taiga muskeg of southern Alaska and western Canada, extending through the southern Canadian provinces to eastern Labrador. Outside the breeding season it moves to southern USA and LA, using temperate to tropical coastal and inland Neotropical wetlands. Its range includes northern California, Pennsylvania, the Caribbean, Tierra del Fuego and the Galápagos. It is a large shank with long yellow legs and a long, thin, dark bill that curves slightly upwards and is longer than the head.

Order

Charadriiformes

Family

Scolopacidae — Sandpipers, Snipes

Breeding range

North America: (mainly) temperate taiga muskeg of Nearctic: s Alaska and sw Canada through s tier of Canadian provinces to e Labrador (e Canada)

Nonbreeding range

s USA and LA : temperate to tropical coastal and inland Neotropical wetlands: n California, Pennsylvania, and throughout Caribbean s to Tierra del Fuego; Galápagos