Home British & World English red-backed sandpiper

Definition of red-backed sandpiper in English:

red-backed sandpiper

noun

North American

  • The dunlin, Calidris alpina (family Scolopacidae), which has a reddish-brown back in the breeding season.

Origin

Early 19th century; earliest use found in Alexander Wilson (1766–1813), ornithologist and poet.