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The long-toed stint, ''Calidris'' or ''Erolia subminuta'', is a small wader bird. It breeds across northern Asia and is strongly migratory, wintering in south and south east Asia and Australasia. It occurs in western Europe only as a very rare vagrant. This bird has yellowish legs and a short thin dark bill. Breeding adults are a rich brown with darker feather centres above and white underneath. They have a light line above the eye and a brown crown. In winter, Long-toed Stints are grey above. The juveniles are brightly patterned above with rufous colouration and white mantle stripes. This bird can be difficult to distinguish from other similar tiny waders which are known collectively as "peeps" or "stints". In particular, Long-toed Stint is very similar to its North American counterpart, the least sandpiper. It differs from that species in its more slender, longer-necked appearance, longer toes, somewhat brighter colours, and weaker wingbar. These birds forage on mudflats, picking up food by sight, sometimes by probing. They mainly eat small crustaceans, insects and snails. Little is known of the breeding habits of this species, although it nests on the ground, and the male has a display flight. ==Description== The long-toed stint is a very small wader measuring just in length with a wingspan of . It weighs about . It has a small head and short, straight sharp-tipped beak. The neck is slender,the belly rounded and the long legs are set well back. The toes are long and slender, especially the middle one. The primary feathers extend as far as the tail. The crown is brown and there is a pale streak just above the eye. The upper parts are brown with the centres of the feathers darker brown. The breast is speckled with pale brown and the underparts are white. The legs and feet are yellow and the beak dark brown, apart from the base of the lower mandible which is yellow or pale brown.〔Hayman, Peter; Marchant, John; Prater, Tony (1986): ''Shorebirds: an identification guide to the waders of the world''. Houghton Mifflin, Boston. ISBN 0-395-60237-8〕 This bird has a distinctive stance and its flight call distinguishes it from other sandpipers. On the ground it can be confused with the red-necked stint (''Calidris ruficollis'') but is more finely built and slightly smaller.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Long-toed stint」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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