Red-necked Phalarope (Phalaropus lobatus)
Red-necked Phalaropes have lobed toes and are therefore good swimmers. They nest in fertile wetlands all around Iceland. The male, which is smaller, incubates the eggs and takes care of the young. The bigger females, which are more colourful, leave the breeding ground shortly after egg laying. Red-necked Phalaropes feed on insects and crustaceans.
Red-necked Phalaropes are commonly seen in Skjálfandi bay during late summer. There they feed on zooplankton that they pick up from the sea surface and prepare their autumn migration to more southerly latitudes.