Great Knot

1. Largest Australian sandpiper with a noticeably long, slightly down-curved bill

2. Grey upperparts with heavy streaking and white underparts in non-breeding season

3. Prominent white rump and narrow wingbar visible in flight

Great Knots specialize in feeding on bivalve mollusks and other marine invertebrates, which they extract from wet mud or sand using their sensitive bill tips. During migration, they undertake non-stop flights of over 9, kilometers between Australia and key stopover sites in the Yellow Sea, requiring them to accumulate large fat reserves. They nearly double their body weight to fuel their journey. Breeding occurs in the alpine and subalpine tundra of northeastern Siberia, where they nest on the ground. Their population has declined significantly due to habitat loss at crucial migratory staging grounds, particularly in the Yellow Sea region.

Great Knots are coastal specialists, most often found on extensive intertidal mudflats and sandflats in sheltered bays, estuaries, lagoons, and harbors. They are highly gregarious, forming large flocks, especially at high tide roosts, and are often seen feeding alongside other shorebirds. Their main strongholds are in northwestern Australia, particularly Roebuck Bay and Eighty Mile Beach, with additional populations in the Gulf of Carpentaria and eastern Queensland. The majority of the world’s population overwinters in Australia, arriving from August onwards.