Greater Yellowlegs
Tringa melanoleuca
The greater yellowlegs is similar in appearance to the smaller lesser yellowlegs. Its closest relative, however, is the greenshank, which together with the spotted redshank form a close-knit group. Among them, these three species show all the basic leg and foot colours found in the shanks, demonstrating that this character is paraphyletic. They are also the largest shanks apart from the willet, which is altogether more robustly built.
ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Willet
Tringa semipalmata
The willet is a particularly elegant and heavily built shorebird with a structure similar to that of the common redshank but being larger in size than the greater yellowlegs while resembling a godwit in flight with black primary coverts and primaries contrasting with a broad white band, white secondaries with a white rump and gray tail band. With its reclassification into the Tringa genus, it stands as the largest species in this prominent sandpiper genus. It is 31–41 cm (12–16 in) in overall length and weighs 200–330 g (7.1–11.6 oz). Voice: The willet's name is onomatopoeic and refers to its loud piercing "pill-will-willet" territorial song., which is higher pitched and repeated at a faster rate in Eastern willets than in Western birds.
ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
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Play today's Daily BirdPhotos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Greater Yellowlegs and Willet.