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  Profile

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  In flight

Cranes & Waders

Eurasian Curlew

Numenius arquata

• uncommon
• 40 km/h
• Near Threatened

That long down-curved bill probes deep into mudflats. Delivers messages with the sound of a fading whistle.

Population

~835,000-1,310,000 mature individuals globally (decreasing)

Habitat

Breeds on upland moors, peat bogs, heathlands, fens, grasslands, meadows, and dune valleys; winters on muddy coasts, estuaries, tidal mudflats, sandy beaches, mangroves, saltmarshes, and inland lakes/rivers

Fun fact

The Eurasian Curlew's evocative bubbling "cur-lee" call, given from its long, downcurved bill, is the source of its common name; the same imitative root gives French "courlis."

Range

Breeds across temperate Europe and Russia/Siberia (British Isles through Scandinavia into Siberia); winters along coasts of northwestern Europe, the Mediterranean, Africa, the Middle East, the Indian Subcontinent, Southeast Asia, Japan, and the Sundas

Diet

Probes soft mud and sand with its long, curved bill for invertebrates — worms, small crabs, molluscs, and other invertebrates; also takes berries and seeds on breeding grounds

Size

0.55 m

Wingspan

0.97 m

Lifespan

33 years