ajohn

It's not a Temminck's Stint, based on structure and the blackish legs.

It looks to me like it may be a Little Stint, but not easy on this one photograph. Do you have more photos?

ajohn

It's difficult to work out exactly why, but it really doesn't look structurally right for Temminck's. I think it's because the body looks too dumpy/rounded (not elongated), the head is too small and rounded, the bird is too upright (Temminck's usually stands more horizontally), the bill is perhaps not sufficiently downcurved and the eye is positioned too far forward.

For comparison, the closest picture of Temmincks (in terms of angle) I can find is:
http://orientalbirdimages.org/se ... _ID=&pagesize=1

I was aware of the risk that mud can lead to a misjudgement of leg colour for stints, but this looks to actually have dark legs - the whole of the right leg looks dark, but the feather immediately above are not stained). I also think that the plumage doesn't really fit for Temminck's (even breeding plumage) and it would be unusual to see one wading this deep into mud (they are usually on drier mud - drained fishponds or low tide at the new boardwalk hide). Also, it is now getting fairly late for Temminck's in HK.

Stints can be very difficult to ID. I'm not sure about which species this is (which is why I asked if there were more photos). But based on these photos I personally think that this bird is unlikely to be Temminck's.

ajohn

The white throat is often quoted as the important feature for Little Stint, but I think this needs to be used carefully because it is only really valid when a bird is in full (or almost full) breeding plumage. Remember that Red-necked Stint also has a white throat in non-breeding plumage, and moulting birds may retain extensive white on the throat.

Structure is the most useful feature for separating the two species - Little Stint tends to have longer legs and a longer bill which narrows towards the tip. Little also typically stands a little bit more upright, with the head held above the line of the body. Red-necked tends to stand horizontally, with the head often held lower, level with the body. Feeding action is also often different - Red-necked shuffles along probing frequently but Little tends to be more active and picks at the surface less frequently. These features need to be used carefully, though.

I still think this bird looks more like Little. The head is held fairly high, and the bill tapers to a narrow tip. I'm still not 100% sure on the ID of this bird, though.