yellowlegs

American  

[yel-oh-legz] / ˈyɛl oʊˌlɛgz /

noun

(used with a singular verb)

1. either of two American shorebirds having yellow legs, Tringa melanoleuca greater yellowlegs or T. flavipes lesser yellowlegs.

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yellowlegs British  

/ ˈjɛləʊˌlɛɡz /

noun

1. (functioning as singular) either of two North American sandpipers, Tringa melanoleuca (or Totanus melanoleucus ) ( greater yellowlegs ) or T. flavipes ( lesser yellowlegs ), having bright yellow legs

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Etymology

Origin of yellowlegs

1765–75, yellow + legs ( def. )

Example Sentences

Without golf balls whizzing overhead, the land has become habitat for migratory shorebirds, among them black-necked stilts, greater yellowlegs and sandpipers, and has even drawn the secretive American bittern.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 18, 2024

If they spot a lesser yellowlegs in New Hampshire in late August, they know it is only passing through on its early southward migration from Canada.

From The New Yorker • Oct. 31, 2018

There are dozens of Scolopacidae species spanning the globe, and while close to two dozen have "sandpiper" in their names, many more don't: godwits, woodcocks, stints, knots, yellowlegs, etc.

From The Verge • Jun. 26, 2016

Sandhill cranes and greater yellowlegs flying from Anchorage, Alaska, will reach the Kern National Wildlife Refuge near Bakersfield only to find a mere trickle.

From National Geographic • Jul. 16, 2015

Frightful looked down on black ducks, mallards, bluewinged teals, plovers, godwits, yellowlegs, sandpipers—all the migrating birds that loved wetlands.

From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George