The curlew sandpiper was formally described in 1763 by the Danish author Erik Pontoppidan under the binomial name Tringa ferrugineus.

The specific ferruginea is from Latin ferrugo, ferruginis, "iron rust" referring to its colour in breeding plumage.

Despite its easterly breeding range, this species is regular on passage in western Europe, presumably because of southwesterly migration route.

In poor lemming years, predatory species such as the Arctic fox (Alopes lagopus) will take Arctic-breeding waders instead.

[17] Counts of the curlew sandpiper in South Africa, specifically at Langebaan Lagoon where they are most numerous, indicate a 40% decline in numbers between 1975 and 2009.

[1] The curlew sandpiper is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.