Wader Quest species seen n° 15: Ruff

Ruff Philomachus pugnax

Titchwell RSPB reserve, Norfolk, England August 2011.

1st November. Cley NNT reserve, Norfolk England (also Thailand & UAE). 

A small group of birds seen on Pat's Pool on the reserve. Also seen at Pak Thale and Lampakbia in Thailand and interestigly two at the Pivot Fields in Dubai.

The breeding range of this species is from north-west Europe east across arctic Russia to the Chukotskiy Peninsula. It then winters from the Mediterranean , much of sub-Saharan Africa east through the Middle East to India and down into Australasia, in Australia it is a regular but rarer visitor. A recent report of two birds seen in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais in Brazil was quite exceptional and probably the first photographic record for Brazil.

Titchwell RSPB reserve, Norfolk, England September 2012.

Ruff  is considered of Least Concern by Birdlife International although the European population is thought to have declined by up to 30% in ten years. The Asian populations are not thought top be declining and there is an increase in birds wintering in Africa. The global population is thought to be 2,000,000 to 2,600,000 individuals.

Titchwell RSPB reserve, Norfolk, England September 2012.

Birdlife International (2013) Species factsheet: Philomachus pugnax. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 06/02/2013

Australian Government Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities: Biodiversity, Species profile and threats database. http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicspecies.pl?taxon_id=850. Downloaded 29/03/2013

Titchwell RSPB reserve, Norfolk, England September 2012.

del Hoyo, J., Elliot, A. & Sargatal, J. eds (1996). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Vol. 3. Hoatzins to Auks. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.

Snow, D. W.; Perrins, C. M. 1998. The Birds of the Western Palearctic Vol 1: Non-Passerines. Oxford University Press, Oxford.

Titchwell RSPB reserve, Norfolk, England September 2012.

For more information on this species see:

Birdlife International species factsheet: http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=3062

Internet Bird Collection: http://ibc.lynxeds.com/species/ruff-philomachus-pugnax

Titchwell RSPB reserve, Norfolk, England September 2012.