The purple sandpiper (Calidris maritima) is not really purple – the name refers to a seldom-seen purple sheen on some of the wing feathers. Mainly dark grey above and whitish below, it has a downcurved beak and short bright orange legs. In flight, it shows a thin white wing-stripe.It breeds in the arctic and subarctic regions of Eurasia and North America and winters further south on the Atlantic coast.
