Great Knot

Overview

Great Knot: Medium sandpiper with brown upperparts showing dark spots on crown and back, and white underparts with black spots on breast and sides. Bill is short and black. Wings show bright patch of orange-brown on coverts. Legs and feet are gray-green. Swift direct flight with rapid wing beats.

Range and Habitat

Great Knot: Breeds in subarctic and montane tundra of northeastern Siberia, winters along the coasts of southeast Asia and Australia. Very rarely observed on west coast of Alaska in spring.

INTERESTING FACTS

The Great Knot was first described by the American physician and naturalist Thomas Horsfield.
This bird is also known as the Great Sandpiper, the Asiatic Knot, and the Eastern Greater Knot.
In winter, this species forms enormous flocks, which can contain thousands of birds.
A group of knots are collectively known as a "cluster", "fling", and "tangle" of knots.

The Great Knot is a small wading species of bird which breeds in the tundra of northeastern Siberia. Nests are built on the ground in a scrape. During the winter months, the Great Knot will migrate to coastal areas of south Asia and Australia, and do so in very large flocks. Some of these birds have been seen on occasion in Western Europe as well. The diet of this species consists mostly of mollusks and insects, which are found via foraging on beaches and mudflats. The current conservation rating of the Great Knot is listed as Least Concern.