Nordmann's Greenshank (Tringa guttifer)

First nests of Endangered Nordmann’s Greenshank Tringa guttifer found in over 40 years indicate nesting plasticity

“…Similarly, all the nests we found at Schaste Bay, arboreal and ground, were characterised by overhanging larch branches. These elements support the belief that greenshanks are obligates of coastal larch ecosystems during the breeding season (Nechaev 1978, Maleko et al 2021). This reliance on larch trees for nesting presents an uncertain future for breeding greenshanks as possible climate change effects on coastal larch ecosystems remain unclear.…”

“…Given that incubation is ~25 days (Maleko et al . 2021), nest initiation probably occurred in late May or early June.…”

“…All ground nest eggs hatched; however, the only active arboreal nest was depredated. Given that incubation is ~25 days (Maleko et al 2021), nest initiation probably occurred in late May or early June.…”

“…We used binoculars and spotting scopes to locate and observe greenshank activity within inland bogs and around forests. Typically, one bird incubated the nest while the other of the pair either foraged on the intertidal mudflat or perched on tall structures near the nest, acting as a sentinel (Maleko et al 2021). We considered a location a potential breeding territory if we repeatedly observed a greenshank perched on a tree in the area, and if it stayed in the immediate vicinity even when flushed.…”

“…Nordmann’s (or Spotted) Greenshanks ( Tringa guttifer ) (hereafter, greenshanks) are listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List (BirdLife International 2020) and, with a small and declining population of 1,200–2,000 individuals, are considered one of the rarest shorebirds in the world (Maleko et al 2021). Greenshanks are endemic to the East Asian–Australasian Flyway and are regularly observed staging and wintering at key coastal sites in China and South-East Asia during the non-breeding season (Peng et al 2017, Zöckler et al 2018, Li et al 2019, Yu et al 2019, 2020).…”