Common Greenshank
Photo: Andreas Trepte · CC BY-SA 2.5

Sandpipers and Allies

Common Greenshank

Tringa nebularia

LCLeast Concern
Family
Sandpipers and Allies (Scolopacidae)
Order
Charadriiformes

Overview

The common greenshank (Tringa nebularia) is a wader in the large family Scolopacidae, the typical waders. The genus name Tringa is the Neo-Latin name given to the green sandpiper by Aldrovandus in 1599 based on Ancient Greek trungas, a thrush-sized, white-rumped, tail-bobbing wading bird mentioned by Aristotle. The specific nebularia is from Latin nebula "mist". Like the Norwegian Skoddefoll, this refers to the greenshank's damp marshy habitat.

Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Range and habitat

Breeds taiga wetlands from Scotland and Scandinavia eastward through temperate Russia to far eastern Russia; winters from southern Europe and Africa eastward through southern Asia to central Japan and southward to Australia and western Micronesia.

Range description: AviList Global Avian Checklist.

Sources and further reading

Last updated September 29, 2026.