Purple Sandpiper

The Purple Sandpiper is a stocky medium-sized sandpiper with dark plumage, a long orange-based bill and short yellow legs. In breeding plumage, the upper plumage is dark brown with edgings ranging from white to red-brown through chamois, with the fringing gradually narrowing with wear. The brown crown is striped with the same colors. The underside is white, strongly marked with black arrow-shaped marks on the chest and flanks. The neck and throat are streaked with brown.
In winter, the plumage is uniformed, particularly on the head and neck, gray-brown. The mantle and the upper surfaces of the wings are the same shade. The mantle feathers have a slight edging while the wing covers give the impression of being covered with a white net. The eye ring and chin are white. The chest and flanks are spotted with black-brown. In flight, two characters are clearly visible: on the one hand, the narrow white wing bar of the base of the remiges that stands out particularly on the dark wings, and on the other hand, the two-color tail, with the two central rectrices black-brown like the rump, framed by the outer rectrices gray-light.
The juvenile resembles the nuptial adult without the warm shades and with the upper feathers bordered with white or light chamois giving a scaly appearance, particularly to the wing covers.