The ruff (Calidris pugnax) is a medium-sized wading bird that breeds in marshes and wet meadows across northern Eurasia. This highly gregarious sandpiper is migratory and sometimes forms huge flocks in its winter grounds, which include southern and western Europe, Africa, southern Asia and Australia.

Rare but regular vagrant to North America, usually single birds found among flocks of yellowlegs.

Of the various Eurasian shorebirds that stray into North America, this one is the most regular and widespread in its occurrence. Ruffs are best known for their bizarre courtship plumage and rituals.

Ruffs gather in huge concentrations of up to one million birds on West African nonbreeding grounds, and a few stray individuals visit North America each year. The extravagant plumage of male Ruffs comes in an almost endless variety of colors and pattern combinations.

The ruff is a large sandpiper; a typical wader, it feeds in shallow water around lakes and wetland areas near the coast. Just a handful of pairs breed in the UK, but some birds are present all year-round. During summer, young birds on their way to Africa from Scandinavia stopover in the UK.

Ruffs are among the most intriguing bird species on Earth, due to the diversity not just between males and females, but also between the three distinctly different types of males that occur. Visual Identification. Ruffs are unique among birds, featuring three distinct male types.

The Ruff is a species of sandpiper that breeds in Eurasia. Outside of the breeding season, these birds migrate to southern Eurasia, Africa, and Australasia. During the breeding season males live up to their name. They have long fluffy feathers around their head and neck, which resembles a ruff or fluffy collar. Read on to learn about the Ruff.

The ruff (Calidris pugnax) is a medium-sized wading bird that breeds in marshes and wet meadows across northern Eurasia. This highly gregarious sandpiper is migratory and sometimes forms huge flocks in its winter grounds, which include southern and western Europe, Africa, southern Asia and Australia.

Ruff, (Philomachus pugnax), in zoology, Old World bird of the sandpiper subfamily Calidritinae (family Scolopacidae, order Charadriiformes) remarkable for its unusual courtship plumage and behaviour. The name ruff applies to the species or may be applied to the male only.

Ruff, with their variable size and plumage, often present identification issues. However, by learning how to recognise Ruff in their various guises through this video, you’ll be able to pick them out with confidence, and have a great reference point for …