Greenshanks are familiar migrants throughout Britain and Ireland, sighted widely along coastal and inland waters in spring and autumn. Several hundred Greenshanks over-winter in the UK, mainly in the West and Ireland. Breeding Greenshanks are found in the uplands of north and west Scotland, using the poorly drained, boulder-strewn peat soils of the Highlands where the landscape is more open. 1500 pairs breed in Scotland, some of which winter in the UK and Ireland. During passage and whilst over-wintering, Greenshank use a wide variety of feeding habitats. Inland these are likely to be lakes, reservoirs and sewage-farms. On the coast, Greenshanks are mostly found on estuaries, but also on saltmarsh, lagoons and muddy shores.