Black-tailed Godwit - Taxonomy

Taxonomy

This species was first described, as Scolopax limosa, by Carolus Linnaeus in 1758. Its scientific name is derived from the Latin limus, meaning 'mud'. The Black-tailed Godwit is a member of the genus Limosa (godwits), family Scolopacidae (sandpipers) and order Charadriiformes, the waders. There are three subspecies:

• L. limosa limosa, the European Black-tailed Godwit, which breeds from western and central Europe to central Asia and Asiatic Russia, as far east as the Yenisei River. Its head, neck and chest are pale orange.

• L. limosa islandica, the Icelandic Black-tailed Godwit, which breeds mostly in Iceland, but also on the Faeroe Islands, Shetland and the Lofoten Islands. It has a shorter bill, shorter legs and more rufous coloration extending onto the belly, compared to limosa.

• L. limosa melanuroides, the Asian Black-tailed Godwit, which breeds in Mongolia, northern China, Siberia and far eastern Russia. Its plumage is similar to islandica, but the bird is distinctly smaller.