Oystercatcher
Oystercatcher
Bird
A striking black-and-white wading bird with a long orange bill used to prise open cockles and mussels, and a loud piping call.
Name Story
Haematopus ostralegus
means “the blood-red-footed oyster-gatherer (that rarely eats oysters)”
What does its name mean?
- Haematopus — blood-red footGreek (haima, 'blood' + pous, 'foot')
- ostralegus — oyster-gathererLatin (ostrea, 'oyster' + legere, 'to gather')
Half of its name is perfectly true — look at those vivid pinkish-red legs and that long orange-red bill. The other half fibs a little: despite being the "oyster-gatherer", it hardly ever eats oysters, prising open mussels and cockles and probing for worms instead.