Turnstone

    Arenaria interpres

Castilian: Vuelvepiedras común

Catalan: Remena-rocs

Gallego: Virapedras

Euskera: Harri-iraularia

CLASIFICACIÓN:

Orden: Charadriiformes

Family: Scolopacidae

Migratory status: Winter resident

CONSERVATION STATUS:

On the National List of Threatened Species, it appears in the “Of Special Interest” category.

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THREATS

Its principal threats are illegal hunting and human disturbances in its wintering and migratory passage areas, given that these affect its diet.

Length / size: 21-24 cm / 43-49 cm

Identification: Small wader with orange legs and a wedge-shaped bill for throwing rocks. During mating season, the adult male's back has orange tones and a large black stripe formed by his lower scapular feathers; his head is white with black streaks; he has a complex pattern of black spots on his chest; and the sides of his mantle and underparts are white. The female is similar in appearance but with a duller orange colour. During the rest of the year they lack the orange colour and their head has brown spots.

Song: It makes a fast, high-pitched "reepeepeepee noise.

Diet: It feeds on insects, but when these are scarce it consumes plant matter, mollusks, crustaceans and spiders. It captures them by throwing rocks with its bill.

Reproduction: It begins in May. The nest is located in a depression in the ground, in small crests or cracks, which the bird covers with leaves. The chicks are very precocious.

HABITAT

It occupies wet areas and vast areas with muddy or pebbly banks and little vegetation; it also appear in man-made structures, such as breakers, ports and wharfs.

DISTRIBUTION

In Spain: It rarely appears while wintering, being concentrated in Bay of Cádiz, the Galician and Asturian coastlines, the Mar Menor, and the Canary and Balearic Islands.

In Castile and León: It is distributed throughout all the provinces, but the most imporant places are Villafáfila (Zamora), La Nava lake (Palencia), and the Ebro swamp (Burgos).

Movements and migrations: It is a migratory species that travels long distances, with northern European specimens arriving to Spain. The prenuptial passage takes place in May on the Atlantic and Cantabrian coasts, and the postnuptial occurs in August-September.

POPULATION

In Spain: There is an estimated population of 1300 wintering individuals.

In Castile and León: