Species: Calidris mauri

Western Sandpiper

Species

Birds

Show on Lists

Salish Sea-reliant birds

Terrestrial vertebrates: birds

Encyclopedia of Puget Sound

Articles:

Salish Sea 'slime' vital for shorebirds

It turns out that a gooey substance known as biofilm is a big deal for Salish Sea shorebirds, providing critical food for some species. But could a proposed port expansion in Vancouver threaten this slimy resource?

Studies suggest that western sandpipers depend on biofilm for close to 60% of their diet. Storey's Beach, Port Hardy, BC. Photo: Nicole Beaulac (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) https://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolebeaulac/26579296150

Classification

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Craniata

Class

Aves

Order

Charadriiformes

Family

Scolopacidae

Genus

Calidris

NatureServe

Source:
ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.104028

Classification

Other Global Common Names

Playero Occidental - bécasseau d'Alaska

Informal Taxonomy

Animals, Vertebrates - Birds - Shorebirds

Formal Taxonomy

Animalia - Craniata - Aves - Charadriiformes - Scolopacidae - Calidris - C. PUSILLA and C. MAURI are often placed in the genus EREUNETES (AOU 1983).

Ecology and Life History

Migration

false - false - true - Migrates northward, mostly along coasts of U.S., early April-early June. Southward migration begins early July, adults prior to juveniles. Nonbreeding birds may not migrate north to breeding range. Uncommon fall and rare spring migrant in Hawaii; occasionally overwinters (Pratt et al. 1987). Migrates through Costa Rica August-November and mid-March to early May (Stiles and Skutch 1989).

Non-migrant

false

Locally Migrant

false

Food Comments

Feeds primarily on aquatic insects; also eats mollusks, worms, and crustaceans. Runs along edge of water snatching up prey from wet mud. See Senner et al. (1989) for information on feeding ecology of migrants at Copper-Bering river delta, south-central Alaska.

Reproduction Comments

Breeding begins late May (Harrison 1978). Both sexes, in turn, incubate 4 eggs for 18-19 days (Terres 1980). Nestlings precocial and downy. Young tended by both parents. Up to 500-700 pairs per sq km near Barrow, Alaska.

Ecology Comments

Nonbreeding: forages regularly in large flocks.

Length

Weight

Conservation Status

NatureServe Global Status Rank

Global Status Last Reviewed

1996-11-26

Global Status Last Changed

1996-11-26

Other Status

LC - Least concern

Distribution

Conservation Status Map

Global Range

GH - 200,000 to >2,500,000 square km (about 80,000 to >1,000,000 square miles) - GH - BREEDS: islands in Bering Sea, along coasts of western and northern Alaska, northeastern Siberia. Nonbreeding birds spend breeding season south to Panama. NORTHERN WINTER: coastal California and North Carolina south along both coasts, through West Indies, to Peru and Surinam.

Global Range Code

Global Range Description

200,000 to >2,500,000 square km (about 80,000 to >1,000,000 square miles)

ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.104028