Main Species
Western Sandpiper
Breeding adult
Small, portly sandpiper with black legs and a black slightly drooping bill. Breeding birds have a rusty cap and rusty mottling on the back.
© Thomas Barbin | Macaulay LibraryBritish Columbia, May 09, 2017Nonbreeding adult
Small, rather chunky shorebird. The bill is long and slightly drooping, although bill length and shape is quite variable among individuals and is not diagnostic on its own. Nonbreeding birds have little streaking on the breast.
© Patrick Maurice | Macaulay LibraryFlorida, November 06, 2016Breeding adult
Tiny shorebird; feeds on aquatic invertebrates usually at the water's edge or in shallow standing water. Appears somewhat front-heavy; folded wings are same length as tail.
© Benjamin Clock | Macaulay LibraryAlaska, May 27, 2009Juvenile
Juveniles look like nonbreeding adults but have a more scaly-looking back with a whiter face.
© Evan Lipton | Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, September 09, 2015Juvenile
In flight, rusty shoulder bars on juveniles can be seen at close range. As in most other "peep" sandpipers, note black stripe down the center of the tail.
© Logan Lalonde | Macaulay LibraryBritish Columbia, April 25, 2013Nonbreeding adults
Tiny shorebird with whitish face and little streaking on the breast. Often forages by probing into mud and sand at water's edge.
© Timothy Barksdale | Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, February 01, 1997Breeding adult
Small, portly sandpiper with black legs and a black bill. Looks rather large headed compared to similar species. Breeding adults have rusty highlights in the head and shoulders.
© Brooke Miller | Macaulay LibraryAlaska, May 06, 2015Nonbreeding adult
Small shorebird with a short neck and larger head. Nonbreeding birds are grayish above and white below. Often forages with its head even with or above the body.
© Chris Wood | Macaulay LibraryNew York, September 20, 2008Juvenile
Juveniles have crisp scaly markings on the back as a result of their newly grown feathers. They also show a rusty bar on the shoulder at a time when adults are in their brown-and-white nonbreeding plumage.
© Timothy Barksdale | Macaulay LibraryKansas, August 01, 1995Nonbreeding adult with Sanderling
Smaller than a Sanderling. Nonbreeding birds have limited streaking on the breast.
© Chris Wood | Macaulay LibraryNew York, September 20, 2008Breeding adult
Breeding birds have a rusty cap and rusty mottling on the back. From a distance its whiter face stands out.
© Tim Lenz | Macaulay LibraryAlaska, May 19, 2012Flock
Often seen on migration and wintering grounds in large flocks, sometimes with other "peep" species.
© Timothy Barksdale | Macaulay LibraryWashington, January 01, 1994Habitat
Breeds in tundra with dwarf vegetation. Migrates and winters along mudflats, beaches, shores of lakes and ponds, and flooded fields.
© Jennifer O'Neill | Macaulay LibraryWashington, April 29, 2017