Sandpipers that is!! Sandpipers are a large group of wading birds and here at Frampton Marsh we get a variety of them visit us throughout the year. You might find green sandpipers, common sandpipers, curlew sandpipers and wood sandpipers here. Some of the rarer birds that can visit are buff-breasted, white-rumped and pectoral sandpipers.
Curlew sandpiper- Neil Smith
Common sandpiper- Neil Smith
Last year we even got a Bairds sandpiper which are scarce visitors to the UK and was a first for the reserve. They breed in northern tundra from eastern Siberia to western Greenland and winter in South America so goodness knows what it was doing over here.
The sandpiper family also consists of other wading birds like curlews, godwits, dunlins and snipes, not just those with sandpiper in their name. Generally their plumage has cryptic brown, grey or streaked patterns which can make them hard to spot and difficult to distinguish from each other. They prod the mud in search for food and have variable bill lengths. They’re a great group of birds and they seem to love it here at the reserve!
Bar-tailed godwit- Neil Smith