Marsh Sandpiper

Marsh Sandpiper (Tringa stagnatilis) is a very slender pale shorebird with exceptionally long greenish legs and a fine straight needle-like bill. Body shape, bill structure, plumage pattern and voice provide the strongest field characters. Age, sex and season may alter its appearance, so identification should combine several features and careful direct comparisons with similar species in the same habitat (Wikipedia, general species account).

It wades in shallow freshwater and saline wetlands, picking aquatic insects, crustaceans and small fish from the surface. Its movements and social behaviour vary through the year, with breeding birds generally more dispersed and non-breeding birds gathering where food is concentrated. The Korean vertebrate catalogue used for this guide records the species in South Korea (Wikipedia, general species account; Wildlife of Korea occurrence records).