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Bird name:

Ruddy Turnstone

Arenaria interpres

Order

CHARADRIIFORMES

Family

Sandpipers (Scolopacidae)

Code 4

RUTU

Code 6

AREINT

ITIS

176571

Breeding Location:

Tundra



Breeding Type:

Monogamous



Breeding Population:



Egg Color:

Olive to olive buff with brown and black marks



Number of Eggs:

2 - 4



Incubation Days:

21 - 23



Egg Incubator:

Both sexes



Nest Material:

Lined with grasses and leaves.



Migration:

Migratory



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General

Ruddy Turnstone: Medium-sized sandpiper with red-brown upperparts and white rump and underparts. Face and breast are black-marked. Bill is thin, short, dark, and slightly upturned. Wings have a unique brown, black, and white pattern visible in flight. Tail is white with black terminal band. Legs are distinctly orange. Sexes are similar. Winter adult and juvenile are duller.

Range and Habitat

Ruddy Turnstone: Breeds on coastal tundra in northwestern Alaska and on islands of Canadian Arctic. Spends winters on coasts from Connecticut and Oregon southward to the Gulf Coast; also found in Eurasia.

Breeding and Nesting

Ruddy Turnstone: Two to four olive to olive buff eggs marked with brown and black are laid in a ground hollow lined with bits of grass and dead leaves, often built under a low bush. Incubation ranges from 21 to 23 days and is carried out by both parents.

Foraging and Feeding

Ruddy Turnstone: Feeds mainly on insects, particularly midges, and some plant material in summer. Eats mollusks, crustaceans, and even carrion in winter; forages on seashores, turning over stones and other debris with its bill.

Vocalization

Ruddy Turnstone: Makes a staccato "tuk-tuk-tuk-tuk" or "kek-kek-kek" while feeding.

Similar Species

Ruddy Turnstone: Black Turnstone is darker in winter plumage, has all-dark breast, duller legs, and lacks any trace of red-brown back feathers. Surfbird has yellow legs and more uniform coloration.

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UnderpartsX
Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.
UpperpartsX
Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.
BreastX
The upper front part of a bird.
FaceX
The front part of the head consisting of the bill, eyes, cheeks and chin.
RumpX
The area between the uppertail coverts and the back of the bird.
Terminal bandX
Refers to the contrasting stripe at the tip of the tail.
4 and 6 letter alpha codesX

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

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ITIS CodesX

The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) was established in the mid-1990�s as a cooperative project among several federal agencies to improve and expand upon taxonomic data (known as the NODC Taxonomic Code) maintained by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

To find the ITIS page for a bird species go to the ITIS web site advanced search and report page at http://www.itis.gov/advanced_search.html. You can enter the TSN or the common name of the bird. It will return the ITIS page for that bird. Another way to obtain the ITIS page is to use the Google search engine. Enter the string ITIS followed by the taxonomic ID, for example "ITIS 178041" will return the page for the Allen's Hummingbird.

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Parts of a Standing birdX
Head Feathers and MarkingsX
Parts of a Flying birdX