Learn about the variety of different sandpipers you're most likely to see the next time you hit the beach or visit a shoreline.
1
/
8
Spotted Sandpiper
If you’re beginning to learn how to ID shorebirds, the spotted sandpipers are the best to get to know, because they’re so widespread throughout the U.S. and Canada. You’ll know them by the distinctive way they constantly bob their tails up and down. During the breeding seasons, spotted sandpipers are brown with white wing stripes and white chests with brown spots. They’re one of the few bird species that practices polyandry, meaning that one female will breed with multiple males. Female spotted sandpipers establish and defend their territory while male spotted sandpipers incubate the eggs and raise the young.
2
/
8
Solitary Sandpiper
Like its name hints at, the solitary sandpiper keeps to itself. It doesn’t migrate in flocks but migrates alone and instead of nesting on the ground like many other shorebird species, the solitary sandpiper finds and reuses old songbird nests high up in the trees of boreal forests. They have white-speckled, brown backs and prominent eye rings. Solitary sandpipers look similar to lesser yellowlegs, another shorebird species, but an easy way to tell the difference is that solitary sandpipers have olive-colored legs and lesser yellowlegs have brighter yellow legs. The solitary sandpiper hunt for insects, crustaceans and other aquatic prey along the muddy edges of ponds, streams, and lakes.
3
/
8
Baird’s Sandpiper
During migration, Baird’s sandpipers cover huge distances, potentially up to 4,000 miles nonstop. They breed in the Canadian arctic and then migrate down through the Great Plains and along the Pacific Coast, though you’ll also find them in smaller number along the Atlantic Coast, as well. Unlike most other sandpiper species, Baird’s sandpipers are willing and frequently do hunt for food away from water sources, pecking for small bugs and larvae in wet meadows and other muddy areas. One way to ID them is to notice how their wingtips extend past their tail, creating a more pointed appearance.
4
/
8
Pectoral Sandpiper
Compared to other sandpiper species, the pectoral sandpiper has a stout body and shorter legs. When it migrates south from its tundra breeding grounds, it visits moist, grassy areas. Think meadows, creeks, and even golf courses. Because breeding season is in the Arctic, insects are in short supply. To counteract this, male pectoral sandpipers will migrate early, usually before the eggs hatch, to make sure the females and young enough to eat before they follow south. Pectoral sandpipers have patterns of brown, gold, and black on their backs and breasts that meet white belly.
5
/
8
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Semipalmated sandpipers are small: about 14 to 17 centimeters long and only slightly larger than the least sandpiper, the smallest sandpiper species in North America. They can walk on mud without sinking thanks to their slightly webbed (aka semipalmated) feet. Their legs and bills are black and their feathers are grayish brown. Although they’re a relatively common species, they are now considered a species of high conservation concern. Their numbers have declined by 30% over the past two decades because of habitat destruction at key migration sites.
6
/
8
Western Sandpiper
With their black legs and bills, as well as their gray-brown patterned feathers, it can be easy to mix up western sandpipers with semipalmated sandpipers, but one key difference is region. Western sandpipers are found on the West Coast and semipalmated sandpipers on the East Coast. Another differentiator for this species is their approach to hunting their prey; they are more willing to completely submerge their bills to probe for food, especially the females which have larger bills than the males.
7
/
8
Stilt Sandpiper
Their long bills and extra long legs give stilt sandpipers an elegant appearance as they probe slowly and deliberately for beetles, snails, and other aquatic invertebrates. Some sandpiper species hunt visually, but stilt sandpipers rely more on their sensitive bills to figure out the location of their prey. Stilt sandpipers forage together in flocks, and don’t get as competitive for food as other sandpiper species. Mated pairs are monogamous and share the responsibility of egg incubation and raising their young. Some male stilt sandpipers may even help take care of the chicks of other mated pairs.
8
/
8
Least Sandpiper
As you might guess from their name, least sandpipers are small in stature, capping out at 6 inches and only weighing about one ounce. Least sandpipers can be found along the coast as well as more inland in moist, muddy areas like bogs and marshes. They look similar to pectoral sandpipers in overall shape. A simple way to ID a least sandpiper is to look for yellow legs. During mating season, male and females form monogamous pairs and the male will create a few different scrape nests that the female will choose from.
READ ON: How to identify a sanderling
