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Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica
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The Bar-tailed Godwit breeds on the coast and in low-lying tundra in Lapland and adjacent Russia as well as in Siberia and
Alaska.
It winters around the North Sea and Atlantic coasts of Europe and, to a lesser extent, of the Mediterranean while eastern birds
winter in South-East Asia and Australasia. See the distribution map at xeno-canto. It arrives in its wintering grounds around August and returns north to breed by late May.
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It is similar to Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa
but, in breeding plumage can be distinguished by its unbarred rufous belly and dark bill, while in winter plumage its upperparts look streaked rather
than plain. It also has a barred rather than black tail but that can, at times, be difficult to see. |
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The bill tends to be shorter than that of the Black-tailed Godwit as well as being more noticeably upcurved. The
legs are shorter but the supercilium is longer. In flight, the Bar-tailed has a white wedge up
the back, similar to that of a Curlew, while the Black-tailed has a white square on the rump and prominent white wing-bars. |
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Photos 1, 3 and 5 were taken in Andalucia, Spain in May while photos 2, 4 and 6 were taken in Scotland in October
/ November. |
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