Yellowlegs, a bird that frequents shores, marshes, and mudflats by both saltwater and freshwater. It lives on mollusks, crustaceans, insects, and other small animals it can find in shallow water. The greater yellowlegs grows 13 to 15 inches (33 to 38 cm) long. It is white, speckled and streaked with black, gray, and brown. The lesser yellowlegs is similar, except that it is about four inches (10 cm) shorter. Both birds have bright yellow legs. Their voices are clear whistles, usually of three or four notes in the greater and one or two in the lesser.Yellowlegs feed on mollusks, crustaceans, and insects.
Yellowlegs feed in shallow water by dipping their long beaks into the water with a fast, darting motion.
Yellowlegs build nests in depressions on the ground and line them with leaves and grasses. They nest in Canada and Alaska, and winter in California and the Gulf states south to Patagonia.
The greater yellowlegs is Tringa melanoleuca; the lesser, T. flavipes. They belong to the family Scolopacidae.