Eurasian curlew
Numenius arquata (Linnaeus, 1758)
The Eurasian curlew (Numenius arquata) is a bird in the family Scolopacidae, order Charadriiformes. It is a small bird by adult body mass, weighing 803 g, with recorded values from 691 g to 869 g and a wingspan of 97 cm.
Quick facts about the Eurasian curlew
This migratory, terrestrial carnivore is classed as an aquatic predator, lives in grassland and has a geographic range of 12,490,000 km². It lays one clutch of 4 eggs per year, incubates them for 28.8 days, reaches sexual maturity at 2 years and is listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN.
- Weight
- 691 g – 869 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Wingspan
- 97 cmsrc for Wingspan
- Lifespan
- 31.5 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Aquatic predatorsrc for Diet
- Longest recorded lifespan
- 31.8 years
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- grasslandsrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 28.8 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 4src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 24 monthssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1src for Litters or clutches a year
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Migratorysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Near Threatened (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
How big is the Eurasian curlew?
Photos of the Eurasian curlew
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the Eurasian curlew live?
Not recorded
What is the Eurasian curlew?
The Eurasian curlew or common curlew (Numenius arquata) is a very large wader in the family Scolopacidae. It is one of the most widespread of the curlews, breeding across temperate Europe and Asia. In Europe, this species is often referred to just as the "curlew", and in Scotland known as the "whaup" in Scots.
From the Wikipedia article “Eurasian curlew” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eurasian_curlew&oldid=1379873086), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
What does the Eurasian curlew sound like?
Is the Eurasian curlew endangered?
The Eurasian curlew is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List: it is close to qualifying as threatened.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Near Threatened species. What the categories mean.
How is the Eurasian curlew classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderCharadriiformes
- familyScolopacidae
- genusNumenius
- SpeciesNumenius arquata (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms Numenius arcuata, Scolopax arcuata, Tringa arquata
Other names and names in other languages (139)
- Common curlewEnglish
- CurlewEnglish
- European curlewEnglish
- Western curlewEnglish
- GrootwulpAfrikaans
- Europese Wulp (Grootwulp)Afrikaans
- LuivogelAlbanian
- HwilpeOld English
- كروان الماءArabic
- كروان أوراسيArabic
- كروان الماء الكبيرArabic
- كروان ماء كبيرArabic
- zarapicuAsturian
- algaravánAsturian
- Böyük kronşnepAzerbaijani
- Вялікі кулонBelarusian
- Вялікі кулёнBelarusian
- Вялiкi кулёнBelarusian
- НавякBulgarian
- Голям свирецBulgarian
- ইউরেশীয় গুলিন্দাBangla
- Kefeleg-aodBreton
- BecutCatalan
- becut eurasiàticCatalan
- ЙӱрлӹквӹтельӹMari
- Пысӑк пӗкӗ сӑмсаChuvash
- koliha velkáCzech
- Wiôldżi bagniôrzKashubian
- gylfinirWelsh
- GylfinirodWelsh
- Stor regnspoveDanish
- Storspove Stor RegnspoveDanish
- BrachvogelGerman
- großer BrachvogelGerman
- ΤουρλίδαGreek
- Ευρασιατική ΤουρλίδαGreek
- (Ευρασιατική) ΤουρλίδαGreek
- granda kurloEsperanto
- Zarapito realSpanish
- suurkoovitajaEstonian
- Kurlinta handiaBasque
- گیلانشاه بزرگPersian
- گیلانشاه معمولیPersian
- kuoviFinnish
- IsokuoviFinnish
- TangspógviFaroese
- Grand courlisFrench
- Courlis cendréFrench
- Grat rintüüterNorthern Frisian
- WylpWestern Frisian
- CruiteachIrish
- crotachScottish Gaelic
- corra-liodScottish Gaelic
- GuilbinnScottish Gaelic
- guilbneachScottish Gaelic
- guilbnichScottish Gaelic
- Mazarico realGalician
- CrottagManx
- חרמשון גדולHebrew
- गुलिंदाHindi
- veliki pozviždačCroatian
- nagy pólingHungarian
- Մեծ ԱրորիկArmenian
- Gajahan besarIndonesian
- Gajahan erasiaIndonesian
- FjöruspóiIcelandic
- chiurloItalian
- Chiurlo maggioreItalian
- ダイシャクシギJapanese
- დიდი კრონშნეპიGeorgian
- Көгілбейkjh
- Үлкен шалшықшыKazakh
- 마도요Korean
- GelvynakCornish
- BroochvullLuxembourgish
- Grousse BroochvullLuxembourgish
- SchneppekinnekLuxembourgish
- didžioji kuolingaLithuanian
- kuitalaLatvian
- KiokoikaMalagasy
- KoikoikaMalagasy
- Мала српоклуна шлукаMacedonian
- голем српоклун свиркачMacedonian
- വാൾക്കൊക്കൻMalayalam
- വാള്ക്കൊക്കന്Malayalam
- GurlinMaltese
- Морин тутгалжин - ᠮᠣᠷᠢᠨ ᠲᠣᠲᠣᠭᠣᠯᠵᠢᠨMongolian
- युरेशियन कोरलMarathi
- Burung Kedidi KendiMalay
- GüttvagelLow German
- आँसीठुँडेNepali
- wulpDutch
- storspoveNorwegian
- Corlieunrm
- Suokurmoiolo
- CourluPicard
- kulik wielkiPolish
- یوریشیائی کرلیوWestern Panjabi
- maçarico-realPortuguese
- Fliaun grondRomansh
- Culic mareRomanian
- culicul mareRomanian
- большой кроншнепRussian
- КроншнепRusyn
- VinaruSicilian
- WhaupScots
- StuorraguškilNorthern Sami
- guškilNorthern Sami
- StuoraguškkástatNorthern Sami
- stuorraguškkástatNorthern Sami
- hvizdák veľkýSlovak
- veliki škurhSlovenian
- KeooeSouthern Sotho
- kthinzaAlbanian
- kojliku i madhAlbanian
- Velika carska šljukaSerbian
- Велика царска шљукаSerbian
- Carska šljuka - Царска шлјукаSerbian
- ChiùrruluSardinian
- WälpSaterland Frisian
- storspovSwedish
- Membe sululuSwahili
- Peria KottanTamil
- பெரிய கோட்டான்Tamil
- นกอีก๋อยใหญ่Thai
- kervan culluguTurkish
- Bayağı kervan çulluğuTurkish
- kervan çulluğuTurkish
- ДаргыйTuvinian
- Великий кульонUkrainian
- Кульон великийUkrainian
- Кульон великий (Кроншнеп великий)Ukrainian
- ArcadaVenetian
- Chim mỏ nhátVietnamese
- WulpeZeelandic
- 大杓鷸Chinese
- 大杓鷸〔白腰杓鷸〕Chinese
- 白腰杓鷸Chinese
- 白腰杓鹬Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List
Relatives of the Eurasian curlew
Other species in the same genus Numenius.
Eurasian whimbrel
Numenius phaeopus
Slender-billed curlew
Numenius tenuirostris
Eskimo curlew
Numenius borealis
Far eastern curlew
Numenius madagascariensis
Little curlew
Numenius minutus
Bristle-thighed curlew
Numenius tahitiensis
CompareEurasian curlew vs Eurasian whimbrelEurasian curlew vs Slender-billed curlewEurasian curlew vs Eskimo curlewEurasian curlew vs Far eastern curlew
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the Eurasian curlew?
The Eurasian curlew is a bird in the family Scolopacidae and the order Charadriiformes. It is migratory.
How heavy is the Eurasian curlew?
The Eurasian curlew weighs 803 g, with values reported from 691 g to 869 g. Its wingspan is 97 cm.
What does the Eurasian curlew eat?
The Eurasian curlew is a carnivore classed as an aquatic predator.
Is the Eurasian curlew endangered?
No, it is listed as Near Threatened (NT) on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.
How long does the Eurasian curlew live?
The Eurasian curlew has a reported lifespan of 31.5 years, with values up to 31.83 years.
How many eggs does the Eurasian curlew lay?
The Eurasian curlew lays 4 eggs per clutch and one clutch per year. The eggs are incubated for 28.8 days.
Who named the Eurasian curlew?
The Eurasian curlew, Numenius arquata, was named by (Linnaeus, 1758).
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
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Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Eurasian curlew (Numenius arquata). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/eurasian-curlew
“Eurasian curlew (Numenius arquata).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/eurasian-curlew.
@misc{eurasian_curlew_2026,
title = {Eurasian curlew (Numenius arquata)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/eurasian-curlew},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}