Ruff (bird)

The Ruff (Philomachus pugnax) is a medium-sized wader. It is usually considered the only member of its genus Philomachus, but more recent research (Thomas et al, 2004) indicates that the Broad-billed and Sharp-tailed Sandpiper may belong there too.Their breeding habitat is bogs, marshes and wet meadows with short vegetation in northern Europe and Russia. Ruff are migratory, wintering in southern and western Europe, Africa and India. They are highly gregarious, with a wintering flock of 1 million birds reported in Senegal. This species is a rare migrant to North America, but has nested (but is not known to have hatched eggs) in Alaska.
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