Greater Yellowlegs

The male’s ringing flight song circles through the same pur-deer-y phrase again and again over the breeding grounds.

Breeds across Alaska and Canada’s boreal zone; migrates through the United States and Central America; winters along U.S. coasts, the Caribbean, Mexico, and south to southern South America.

Freshwater and brackish marshes, mudflats, flooded fields, estuaries, and the edges of ponds, lakes, and rivers; breeds in muskeg bogs and open spruce or tamarack wetlands across the boreal forest.

Present on North American breeding grounds from late April to August; widespread migrant March–May and July–October; winters primarily September–April in coastal and southern regions.

The Greater Yellowlegs is a tall, graceful shorebird best known for its strikingly long, lemon-yellow legs and emphatic, ringing calls that carry over coastal marshes. Larger and bolder than its close cousin the Lesser Yellowlegs, this species frequents a variety of shallow-water habitats during migration and winter, deftly sweeping its long bill side-to-side to seize small aquatic prey. Its crisp white underparts, mottled gray-brown upperparts, and slightly upturned bill give it a dapper appearance that stands out among other shorebirds.