A compact, strong-built shorebird with a surprisingly dramatic life story. In non-breeding plumage, it looks fairly modest: soft grey-brown above, pale underneath, with a short, straight bill and sturdy legs that carry it briskly along mudflats and sandy shores. But in the Arctic summer, it changes completely. Several subspecies are recognized around the world, from those that migrate along the Atlantic coasts of the Americas to others that travel the East Asian–Australasian Flyway, but they all share the same basic shape and colour-changing lifestyle.
What truly makes the Red Knot famous is its extreme migration. Some populations travel from the tip of South America all the way to the Canadian Arctic and back each year. One especially well-known individual nicknamed “Moonbird” (band number B95) has been estimated to have flown more than 400,000 kilometres (250,000 miles)in his lifetime—farther than the distance from Earth to the Moon. Before they set off, knots feed furiously, almost doubling their body weight as they pack on fat reserves that act as fuel for the long flights. At key stopover sites such as Delaware Bay on the U.S. Atlantic coast, thousands gather to feast on horseshoe crab eggs, timing their arrival to match the crabs’ mass spawning events.
For most of the year, Red knots are birds of open coasts and tidal flats, where they move in tight, coordinated flocks. At low tide, they spread out to probe wet sand and mud for clams, snails, worms, and small crustaceans, sometimes swallowing tiny shellfish whole and crushing them in their muscular stomachs. At high tide, they roost on higher ground, often packed shoulder to shoulder. When disturbed, the entire flock can rise at once, wheeling and twisting so that their bodies flash from pale to dark in synchronized waves. Their calls are soft and musical—short “knit” or “knot” notes that carry over the sound of wind and surf and give the species its common name.
Distribution
Albania
Algeria
Angola
Anguilla
Antigua & Barbuda
Argentina
Aruba
Australia
Austria
Azerbaijan
Bahamas
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belarus
Belgium
Belize
Benin
Bermuda
Bolivia
Bonaire Sint Eustatius And Saba
Botswana
Brazil
British Virgin Is.
Brunei
Bulgaria
Cameroon
Canada
Cape Verde
Cayman Islands
Chile
China
Colombia
Congo-Brazzaville
Costa Rica
Croatia
Cuba
Curaçao
Cyprus
Czechia
Côte D’ivoire
DR Congo (Kinshasa)
Denmark
Dominica
Dominican Republic
East Timor
Ecuador
Egypt
El Salvador
Equatorial Guinea
Estonia
Falkland Islands
Faroe Islands
Fiji
Finland
France
French Guiana
French Southern T.
Gabon
Gambia
Georgia
Germany
Ghana
Gibraltar
Greece
Greenland
Grenada
Guadeloupe
Guam
Guatemala
Guernsey
Guinea-Bissau
Guinea
Guyana
Haiti
Honduras
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Isle Of Man
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Jersey
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Korea
Kuwait
Latvia
Lebanon
Liberia
Libya
Luxembourg
Macao
Malaysia
Mali
Malta
Martinique
Mauritania
Mexico
Monaco
Mongolia
Montenegro
Montserrat
Morocco
Mozambique
Myanmar
Namibia
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Nigeria
North Korea
North Macedonia
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Palau
Panama
Papua New Guinea
Paraguay
Peru
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Puerto Rico
Romania
Russia
Saint Barthélemy
Saint Lucia
Saint Martin
Saint Pierre
Saint Vincent
Saudi Arabia
Senegal
Serbia
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
Somalia
South Africa
South Georgia
Spain
Sri Lanka
St. Kitts & Nevis
Sudan
Suriname
Sweden
Switzerland
Syria
São Tomé & Príncipe
Taiwan
Tanzania
Thailand
Togo
Trinidad & Tobago
Tunisia
Turks & Caicos
Turkey
UAE
US Virgin Islands
Ukraine
United Kingdom
United States
Uruguay
Venezuela
Vietnam
Yemen
ZambiaAnything we've missed?
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Terrestrial / Aquatic
Altricial / Precocial
Polygamous / Monogamous
Dimorphic (size) / Monomorphic
Active: Diurnal / Nocturnal
Social behavior: Solitary / Pack / Herd
Diet: Carnivore / Herbivore / Omnivore / Piscivorous / Insectivore
Migratory: Yes / No
Domesticated: Yes / No
Dangerous: Yes / No
