Western Sandpiper
Calidris mauri
Small sandpiper with relatively long, droopy bill (longer on females). In breeding plumage, shows rich rufous tones on shoulders, cheeks, and crown. Nonbreeding is plain pale gray above and white below. Juveniles look pale-faced and have a bright strip of rufous feathers on the upper edge of the wings. Most similar to Semipalmated Sandpiper, which averages shorter-billed and duller grayish-brown overall. Extremely difficult to distinguish in winter; note Western is somewhat larger-headed and more front-heavy. Droopy bill might recall Dunlin, but Western is smaller and paler. Breeds on high Arctic tundra in Alaska. In migration and winter, occurs in large flocks on mudflats and beaches. Much more common in western North America; uncommon to rare on the east coast. Occurs in the winter in the U.S., unlike Semipalmated Sandpiper; regularly winters as far south as Peru, rare to Chile.
Identification
Adults have dark legs and a short, thin, dark bill, thinner at the tip. The body is brown on top and white underneath. They are reddish-brown on the crown. This bird can be difficult to distinguish from other similar tiny shorebirds, especially the semipalmated sandpiper. This is particularly the case in winter plumage, when both species are plain gray. The western sandpiper acquires winter plumage much earlier in the autumn than the semipalmated sandpiper.<p>Measurements:
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Calidris mauri
- Authority
- (Cabanis, 1857)
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Scolopacidae
- Genus
- Calidris
Range and habitat
- Breeding range
- NA, PAL : Chukotskiy Pen. s to Anadyr (ne Siberia; few), St. Lawrence I. (Bering Sea) and w, n Alaska mainland
- Non-breeding range
- NA, MA, n SA : temperate to n tropical (mainly) coastal Western Hemisphere: Washington to Peru and Galapagos (e Pacific), se Canada to Florida, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean islands and coasts to Guianas; inland c Mexico to n Costa Rica
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Orange-breasted Thornbird
Phacellodomus ferrugineigula
Medium-sized, long-tailed thornbird with a brown body and a rufous forehead and throat. The tail is rufous with a brown center. Resembles Orange-eyed Thornbird, but has dark eyes. An inhabitant of wet marshy areas with scattered trees, where unlike others thornbirds it builds large woven nests of grass, leaves, and stems. Song is a series of loud ringing notes, usually delivered as a duet.
Little Stint
Calidris minuta
Tiny shorebird with extensive range across Europe, Africa, and Asia. Very rare vagrant in North America. All ages show dark legs and a straight, fine-tipped bill. Adults in breeding plumage are variably flushed with bright rusty orange on the head, neck sides, and upperparts, usually brightest in mid- to late-summer. Compared with breeding Red-necked Stint, note white throat and more uniformly bright wing coverts and scapulars on Little. Juveniles are typically quite bright and neatly patterned above, often with bold white stripes or "braces" down the back, and have very black-centered wing coverts and tertials. Nonbreeding birds rather plain pale gray and extremely difficult to separate from other small “peeps”. Note bill shape and overall structure. Temminck’s has longer tail and more crouched posture; Red-necked has slightly shorter bill and legs and more attenuated wings. Found in fresh and brackish wetland habitats. Occurs locally in flocks; elsewhere singles travel with flocks of other waders.
White-bellied Sunbird
Cinnyris talatala
A small, pale-bellied sunbird. The male has iridescent blue-green upperparts and head, with a bold white belly and broad purplish breast band. The female is very clean, gray-brown above and pale gray underneath, without any markings. Singles, pairs, and small groups occupy savanna, broadleaf woodland, and parkland, foraging for insects and nectar. The song is a canary-like warble and the call is a strained, 2-5 note “cheet-cheet….” Oustalet’s Sunbird differs by having a shorter bill and darker throat, a broader maroon breast band, a blue (not green) upper tail, and orange (not yellow) pectoral tufts.
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