Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs

Description

As the name suggests, Yellowlegs have bright yellow legs. The Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs are similar looking, but the Lesser is indeed smaller. Greaters are 11½‒13 inches long, and Lessers are 9‒10½ inches long. Greater Yellowlegs have almost a checkered pattern along their chest and belly, whereas Lesser Yellowlegs have some speckling at the top of the chest but are mostly white in the chest through the belly. Parents of both species tend their young together and protest noisily with attacks or distraction displays when predators or humans venture close to the nest. A nearby tree, typically a black spruce, is often used as an observation post.

Habitat and Status

The Greater Yellowlegs is a common migrant and a locally common breeder in the Chugach Region. Hardy and adaptable, Greater Yellowlegs have been showing up more frequently on recent Christmas Bird Counts, especially well inland in the southern U.S.—a trend that may accelerate in the decades ahead. Audubon’s climate model suggests wintering areas will more than double in extent as the climate warms, with the species wintering north well into the Midwest and Great Lakes region. However, trouble looms ahead as most of its current breeding range is expected to be lost including some loss in the Chugach Region. As will affect other boreal breeders, a key consideration for the future will be forest health—a matter of considerable concern.

The Lesser Yellowlegs is a common migrant and a locally uncommon breeder in the Chugach Region. This little cousin of the Greater Yellowlegs currently nests in and around tree line and open boreal forests across Alaska and Canada. Audubon’s climate model suggests most of its current summer range will be lost by 2080, with no potential for expansion and marked move northward. If the species is going to thrive during the summer, the tree line will need to move northward as quickly as the forecast for suitable climate conditions. Suitable wintering areas are expected to expand northward and inland—although not as dramatically as in the case of the similar Greater Yellowlegs.

Distribution of Greater Yellowlegs in the Chugach Region.

Distribution of Lesser Yellowlegs in the Chugach Region.