Ruff

The ruff is a medium-sized, long-necked, pot-bellied wader that breeds in marshes and wet meadows across northern Eurasia and winters in southern and western Europe, Africa, southern Asia and Australia, sometimes in huge flocks. The male is much larger than the female, called the reeve, and in breeding plumage has brightly coloured head tufts, bare orange facial skin, extensive black on the breast and a large ornamental collar. Females and non-breeding males are grey-brown above and mainly white below (Wikipedia, general species account).

Three types of male, including a rare female-mimic form, use different strategies at a lek. The female lays four eggs in a hidden ground nest and raises the chicks alone. It forages in wet grassland and soft mud, feeding mainly on insects, and also takes plant material such as rice and maize on migration and in winter.