Green Sandpiper

The green sandpiper is a secretive wader with dark plumage, often first detected by its sharp alarm call « tluît-uit-uit » as it takes flight abruptly. Its dark brown back contrasts strongly with its brilliant white rump, clearly visible in flight. Unlike other sandpipers, it favours sheltered watercourses, ditches and shaded pools rather than open mudflats. A regular winter visitor to the Vendée marshes, it probes the mud for insect larvae and small worms.