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==Identification== | ==Identification== | ||
− | Dark legs, short thin dark bill, thinner at the tip with a kink that gives an impression of a downturned bill. Most birds have longer bills than | + | Dark legs that has partially webbed toes (similarly much as [[Semipalmated Sandpiper]], short thin dark bill, thinner at the tip with a kink that gives an impression of a downturned bill. Most birds have longer bills than Semipalmated Sandpiper but there is much overlap.<br /> |
Breeding: pale basic color with many dark spots on underside and mantle, scapulars reddish-brown with black centers, reddish brown crown and ear-coverts. Semipalmated Sandpiper can also have reddish-brown but not as much as a fully marked western. <br /> | Breeding: pale basic color with many dark spots on underside and mantle, scapulars reddish-brown with black centers, reddish brown crown and ear-coverts. Semipalmated Sandpiper can also have reddish-brown but not as much as a fully marked western. <br /> | ||
Winter: mostly pale grey upperside, white underside with whitish breast area. Semipalmated Sandpiper has darker ear-coverts and upper breast<br /> | Winter: mostly pale grey upperside, white underside with whitish breast area. Semipalmated Sandpiper has darker ear-coverts and upper breast<br /> |
Revision as of 03:04, 20 August 2009
- Calidris mauri
Identification
Dark legs that has partially webbed toes (similarly much as Semipalmated Sandpiper, short thin dark bill, thinner at the tip with a kink that gives an impression of a downturned bill. Most birds have longer bills than Semipalmated Sandpiper but there is much overlap.
Breeding: pale basic color with many dark spots on underside and mantle, scapulars reddish-brown with black centers, reddish brown crown and ear-coverts. Semipalmated Sandpiper can also have reddish-brown but not as much as a fully marked western.
Winter: mostly pale grey upperside, white underside with whitish breast area. Semipalmated Sandpiper has darker ear-coverts and upper breast
Juvenile: rufous on upper scapulars producing a contrasting V on the back, pale breast and side + underside of head.
Distribution
Breeds in eastern Siberia and Alaska. Migrates on both coasts of North America, far more common on the west coast where 4 million can be found in one area. Winters in South America.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species
Habitat
Tundra and mudflats.
Behaviour
They nest in scrapes on the ground usually under some vegetation. The male makes several scrapes; the female selects one and lays 4 eggs. Both parents incubate and care for the young. Sometimes the female deserts her mate and brood prior to the offspring fledging.
The diet includes insects, small crustaceans and molluscs.
References
- Clements, James F. 2007. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to October 2007. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. ISBN 9780801445019
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Western Sandpiper. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 11 May 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Western_Sandpiper