Red Knots are large, bulky sandpipers. They are relatively short, with a straight bill tapering to the tip. The bill, as well as wings, is slightly longer in females. Female breeding plumage has light-colored feathers amongst the belly and less distinct eyeline. However, sexes appear similar in winter. Juvenile plumage is similar to that of adults in winter, but have gray back feathers outlined in white and black, giving a scaly appearance.

References cited in Species Profile

• Baker, Allan, Patricia Gonzalez, R.I.G. Morrison and Brian A. Harrington. 2013. Red Knot (Calidriscanutus), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Ithaca: Cornell Lab of Ornithology; Retrieved from the Birds of North America Online: http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/563
• Cornell Lab of Ornithology. 2015. Red Knot. All About Birds. http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red_Knot/id
• Rosenberg, K.V., D. Pashley, B. Andres, P. J. Blancher, G.S. Butcher, W.C. Hunter, D. Mehlman, A.O. Panjabi, M. Parr, G. Wallace, and D. Wiedenfeld. 2014. The State of the Birds 2014 Watch List. North American Bird Conservation Initiative, U.S. Committee. Washington, D.C. 4 pages.
• Niles, L., H. Sitters, A. Dey, and Red Knot Status Assessment Group. 2010. Red Knot Conservation Plan for the Western Hemisphere (Calidris canutus), Version 1.1. Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, Manomet, Massachusetts, USA.
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2015. Alaskan Red Knot Subspecies (Calidris canutus roselaari) 90-Day Finding. http://www.fws.gov/alaska/fisheries/fieldoffice/fairbanks/pdf/red_knot_faq.pdf