bird ID

[jonny_redhorse]

I came across a lone shore-bird(about 12"-14" tall) this morning and thought maybe a kill-deer(not) ......plover.....sand-piper......bird was 75 -80 yards from me when I took this pic(kinda "ratty" lookin I know.lol!)....I looked the bird up in my Audubon bird guide and came up with what looks like a "greater yellowlegs"(the birds legs were definitely yellow)...bird belongs up in the "tundra" according to it's range ...anyone out there know what this bird is for sure?...... jonny

original image:

[PRFISHER]

You are correct it is a greater yellowlegs much like a snipe but bigger also the bars under its neck run vertical and a snipe will run horrizontal

[Steve Foss]

I think it is a greater as well. It can be a close call, but the greater have more streaking on the belly than the lesser, and a very slight upturn to the bill where the lesser has a straight bill.

They nest in a large part of Canada, not necessarily only in Tundra, but in a variety of open wetland habitats. They winter along the far southern U.S. and along its coastlines. You captured a migrating bird. They are very common in spring and early fall as they migrate.

[Wiskers]

I have heard them called a Rail, Is there such a bird?

[Steve Foss]

There are two rail species common in Minnesota, the sora and the yellow. They are both shorter, squat birds compared with the yellowlegs shown here. They both are marsh birds, though, and can be found in the same places, generally, that you find yellowlegs. The rails tend to be more shy, however, and usually stay more near cover.