EURASIAN OYSTERCATCHER

About this heritage

The Eurasian oystercatcher, Haematopus ostralegus, is a robust and very distinctive wader. Its plumage is bicolored: black on the head, back, and chest, and white on the belly. Notable features include its long bill of an intense red-orange color, red eyes, and pink legs.

Its diet consists of mollusks and marine worms, which it captures with its powerful bill, capable of opening shells or probing the substrate in search of food. During the breeding season, it reproduces on the coasts of northern Europe, from Iceland to Scandinavia, laying between two and four eggs in small ground hollows, camouflaged with gravel and shells.

In the Miño estuary, it does not stay year-round. It arrives during its migrations from breeding areas towards southern Europe and northern Africa, being easier to observe during winter or migration periods.