Ruddy turnstone Ruddy turnstone The ruddy turnstone ("Arenaria interpres") is a small wading bird, one of two species of turnstone in the genus "Arenaria". The scientific name is from Latin. The genus name "arenaria" derives from "arenarius", "inhabiting sand, from "arena", "sand". The specific "interpres" means "messenger"; when visiting Gotland in 1741, Linnaeus thought that the Swedish word "Tolk" "interpreter" applied to this species, but in the local dialect the word means "legs" and is used for the redshank. It is now classified in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae but was formerly sometimes placed in the plover family Charadriidae. It is a highly
Turnstone and powerful, slightly upturned bills are adapted to their feeding technique. As the name implies, these species overturn stones, seaweed, and similar items in search of invertebrate prey. They are strictly coastal, prefer stony beaches to sand, and often share beach space with other species of waders such as purple sandpipers. Their appearance in flight is striking, with white patches on the back, wings and tail. The ruddy turnstone (or just turnstone in Europe), "Arenaria interpres", has a circumpolar distribution, and is a very long distance migrant, wintering on coasts as far south as South Africa and Australia. It is