Eurasian Whimbrel
Numenius phaeopus
IUCN status: Not evaluated (prior to split, Least Concern)
Flyway population 90 000 (2022 estimate)
Australian population 10 000
Eurasian Whimbrel. Moreton Bay. Robert Bush.
Identification
Non-breeding: The crown is brown with a central pale stripe. There is a white supercilium. The neck and mantle are brown streaked with black. The upperparts are brown with black markings. The chin is pale buff leading into the throat and breast that are buff-white with heavy brown streaking. The rest of the underparts are white with brown barring. The bill is over twice as long as the head and down-curved. The tip is black with the upper mandible shading to grey at the base, whilst the lower mandible shades to pink. The legs are blue grey and appear almost stocky.
Breeding: Similar to the non-breeding but sharper.
Juvenile: Similar to the non-breeding plumage but darker on the head and the rest of the markings less distinct.
Confusing Species
Far Eastern Curlew: This bird is huge and at least twice as big as the Whimbrel. Its bill is 4 times the length of its head. It has no chestnut crown to the top of the head.
Little Curlew: Smaller than the Whimbrel in size and the length of the bill, which is also less down-curved. Does not have a white rump. It stands more upright like a Pacific Golden Plover.
Distribution
Eurasian Whimbrel breeds in Scotland, Scandinavia and NE Russia. It has extensive non-breeding grounds from Africa to Asia and to Australasia. Note that Whimbrel split into Eurasian Whimbrel and Hudsonian Whimbrel in 2025.
Monthly reports of Eurasian Whimbrel in Queensland
Best sites in Queensland to see Eurasian Whimbrel
Yearly trends in Queensland
International and Nationally Important sites in Queensland
| Significant Bird Area | Year | Peak Count | International | National |
| Moreton Bay | 2021 | 1603 | Yes | Yes |
| Great Sandy Strait | 2012 | 1177 | Yes | Yes |
| Ccentral Qld Narrows | 2016 | 1203 | Yes | Yes |
| Shoalwater | 2011 | 789 | No | Yes |
| Port Clinton | 2020 | 643 | No | Yes |
| Mackay | 2023 | 640 | No | Yes |
| Cairns area | 2023 | 606 | No | Yes |
| Mapoon | 2016 | 489 | No | Yes |
Conservation
EPBC listing: Marine, Migratory. Not listed as threatened
References
- BirdLife Australia (2023). Whimbrel. [Text before updates sourced from: Marchant, S. et al (eds) 1990-2006 Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds.Volume 1 to 7.] Birdlife Australia. Birdlife Australia. Source: https://hanzab.birdlife.org.au/species/whimbrel/ Accessed: April 30, 2026 Time Zone: +10:00
- Smith, M. G., M. A. Skeel, E. P. Mallory, and P. Pyle (2025). Eurasian Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (S. M. Billerman, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.whimbr5.01
- eBird. 2021. eBird: An online database of bird distribution and abundance [web application]. eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Available: http://www.ebird.org (Accessed: Date 12/4/2026)
- Rogers A, Fuller RA & Amano T (2023) Australia’s migratory shorebirds: Trends and prospects. Report to the National Environmental Science Program. University of Queensland, Brisbane.
- Driessen, J., Kidd, L. R., Weller, D. R., Purnell, C., Maguire, G., Jaensch, R., and LeClair, S. M. (2025). Australian National Directory of Important Migratory Shorebird Habitat. Report for the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. BirdLife Australia, Melbourne.