Ruddy Turnstone
Arenaria interpres
Silhouette: Elaine R. Wilson (modified) · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderCharadriiformes (Shorebirds and Allies)
- FamilyScolopacidae (Sandpipers and Allies)
- GenusArenaria (Turnstones)
- SpeciesArenaria interpres (Ruddy Turnstone)
About the Ruddy Turnstone
The ruddy turnstone (Arenaria interpres) is a small cosmopolitan wading bird, one of two species of turnstone in the genus Arenaria. It is now classified in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae but was formerly sometimes placed in the plover family Charadriidae. It is a highly migratory bird, breeding in northern parts of Eurasia and North America, and flying south to winter on coastlines almost worldwide. It is the only species of turnstone in much of its range and is often known simply as turnstone.
The ruddy turnstone was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Tringa interpres. The species is now placed together with the black turnstone in the genus Arenaria that was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760 with the ruddy turnstone as the type species. The genus name arenaria is from Latin arenarius, "inhabiting sand", from arena, "sand". The specific interpres means "messenger"; when visiting Gotland in 1741, Linnaeus thought that the Swedish word Tolk, meaning "interpreter" applied to this species, but in the local dialect the word means "legs"... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Ruddy Turnstone in Gates of the Arctic National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Gates of the Arctic National Park
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Actitis macularius
Lesser Yellowlegs
Tringa flavipes
Wilson's Snipe
Gallinago delicata
Least Sandpiper
Calidris minutilla
Upland Sandpiper
Bartramia longicauda
Baird's Sandpiper
Calidris bairdii
Wandering Tattler
Tringa incana
Red-necked Phalarope
Phalaropus lobatus
Western Sandpiper
Calidris mauri
Solitary Sandpiper
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Semipalmated Sandpiper
Calidris pusilla
Dunlin
Calidris alpina
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.