Eurasian curlew

The Eurasian curlew or common curlew (Numenius arquata) is a very large wader in the family Scolopacidae. It is one of the most widespread of the curlews, breeding across temperate Europe and Asia. In Europe, this species is often referred to just as the "curlew", and in Scotland known as the "whaup" in Scots.

Taxonomy

The Eurasian curlew was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Scolopax arquata. It is now placed with eight other curlews in the genus Numenius that was introduced by the French ornithologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760. The genus name Numenius is from Ancient Greek , , a bird mentioned by Hesychius. It is associated with the curlew because it appears to be derived from neos, "new" and mene "moon", referring to the crescent-shaped bill. The species name arquata is the Medieval Latin name for this bird, derived from Latin , "bow-shaped", and again referring to the shape of the bill.

The English name "curlew" is imitative of the Eurasian curlew's call, but may have been influenced by the Old French , "messenger", from , "to run". It was first recorded in 1377 in Langland's Piers Plowman "".

Three subspecies are recognised:

Behaviour and ecology

The Eurasian curlew is generally wary. It is highly gregarious outside the breeding season.

The oldest recorded is a female 33 years and 8–9 months old, ringed on Brownsea Island in 1992 and breeding in the New Forest, seen still alive at the start of March 2026.

Breeding

The nest is a bare scrape in a meadow or similar habitat. Curlews lay four eggs in April or May, and both adults incubate them for four weeks until they begin to hatch. Curlews tend to nest close to common kestrel nests as these can offer protection from other predators, such as corvids, even though kestrels also prey on curlew nests.

Eggs Numenius arquata.jpg|Clutch of eggs

Numenius arquata MWNH 0226.JPG|Eggs Museum Wiesbaden, Germany

Curlew (Numenius arquata) in flight.jpg|In flight, Argyll, Scotland

Eurasian Curlew (Numenius arquata) skull at the Royal Veterinary College anatomy museum.JPG|Skull

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Food and feeding

The Eurasian curlew feeds by probing soft mud for small invertebrates, but will also pick up small crabs and earthworms from the surface when the opportunity arises.

Predation

Eurasian curlews eggs are preyed on by foxes and raptors. In addition sheep have been recorded by the BBC nature series Springwatch preying on the eggs.

Status

The Eurasian curlew was formerly listed as a species of Least Concern by the IUCN, due to its extensive range and relatively large population. However, its population was found to be declining at a very rapid rate. Following an evaluation of population trends, this classification was found to be outdated and the status of the species was consequently upgraded to Near Threatened status in 2008. Although it is a common bird, its numbers are noticeably declining, The curlew is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.

Research by scientists at the British Trust for Ornithology suggests that curlew populations in the UK have been negatively affected in areas with high levels of arable farming and afforestation which have reduced its natural habitats of open grasslands.

References

External links

Conserving breeding curlews in Southern England
(Eurasian) curlew species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds
Video of a Curlew Probing the Mud in the Thames Estuary