Broad-billed Sandpiper
Encyclopedia
The Broad-billed Sandpiper (Limicola falcinellus) is a small wading
bird
. It is the only member of the genus
Limicola; some have proposed that it should be placed in the genus Erolia with the "stint
" sandpipers, but more recent research (Thomas et al., 2004) suggests that it is should rather go into the genus Philomachus with the ruff and possibly the Sharp-tailed Sandpiper
; it certainly is a fairly unusual calidrid
.
, and shorter legs. The breeding adult has patterned dark grey upperparts and white underparts with blackish markings on the breast. It has a pale crown stripe and supercilia.
In the boreal winter, they are pale grey above and white below, like a winter Dunlin, but retaining the head pattern. Juveniles have backs, similar to young Dunlin, but the white flanks and belly and brown-streaked breast are distinctive.
, spending the non-breeding season from easternmost Africa
, through south and south-east Asia
to Australasia
. It is highly gregarious, and will form flocks with other calidrid waders, particularly Dunlin
s. Despite its European breeding range, this species is rare on passage in western Europe, presumably because of the south-easterly migration
route.
This bird's breeding habitat is wet taiga
bogs in Arctic northern Europe
and Siberia
. The male performs an aerial display during courtship. They nest in a ground scrape, laying 4 eggs
.
They forage in soft mud on marshes and the coast, mainly picking up food by sight. They mostly eat insect
s and other small invertebrates.
The Broad-billed Sandpiper is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA
) applies.
Wader
Waders, called shorebirds in North America , are members of the order Charadriiformes, excluding the more marine web-footed seabird groups. The latter are the skuas , gulls , terns , skimmers , and auks...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
. It is the only member of the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Limicola; some have proposed that it should be placed in the genus Erolia with the "stint
Stint
A stint is one of several very small waders in the paraphyletic "Calidris" assemblage - often separated in Erolia -, which in North America are known as peeps...
" sandpipers, but more recent research (Thomas et al., 2004) suggests that it is should rather go into the genus Philomachus with the ruff and possibly the Sharp-tailed Sandpiper
Sharp-tailed Sandpiper
The Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Calidris acuminata is a small wader.- Taxonomy :More recently, a review of new data has indicated that this bird should perhaps better be placed into the genus Philomachus- as P...
; it certainly is a fairly unusual calidrid
Calidrid
The calidrids or typical waders are a group of Arctic-breeding, strongly migratory wading birds. These birds form huge mixed flocks on coasts and estuaries in winter. They are the typical "sandpipers", small to medium-sized, long-winged and relatively short-billed.Their bills have sensitive tips...
.
Description
Broad-billed Sandpipers are small waders, slightly smaller than the Dunlin, but with a longer straighter billBeak
The beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...
, and shorter legs. The breeding adult has patterned dark grey upperparts and white underparts with blackish markings on the breast. It has a pale crown stripe and supercilia.
In the boreal winter, they are pale grey above and white below, like a winter Dunlin, but retaining the head pattern. Juveniles have backs, similar to young Dunlin, but the white flanks and belly and brown-streaked breast are distinctive.
Distribution and habitat
The Broad-billed Sandpiper is strongly migratoryBird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
, spending the non-breeding season from easternmost Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, through south and south-east Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
to Australasia
Australasia
Australasia is a region of Oceania comprising Australia, New Zealand, the island of New Guinea, and neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term was coined by Charles de Brosses in Histoire des navigations aux terres australes...
. It is highly gregarious, and will form flocks with other calidrid waders, particularly Dunlin
Dunlin
The Dunlin, Calidris alpina, is a small wader, sometimes separated with the other "stints" in Erolia. It is a circumpolar breeder in Arctic or subarctic regions. Birds that breed in northern Europe and Asia are long-distance migrants, wintering south to Africa, southeast Asia and the Middle East...
s. Despite its European breeding range, this species is rare on passage in western Europe, presumably because of the south-easterly migration
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
route.
This bird's breeding habitat is wet taiga
Taiga
Taiga , also known as the boreal forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests.Taiga is the world's largest terrestrial biome. In North America it covers most of inland Canada and Alaska as well as parts of the extreme northern continental United States and is known as the Northwoods...
bogs in Arctic northern Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
. The male performs an aerial display during courtship. They nest in a ground scrape, laying 4 eggs
Bird egg
Bird eggs are laid by females and incubated for a time that varies according to the species; a single young hatches from each egg. Average clutch sizes range from one to about 17...
.
They forage in soft mud on marshes and the coast, mainly picking up food by sight. They mostly eat insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s and other small invertebrates.
The Broad-billed Sandpiper is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA
AEWA
The Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds is the largest of its kind developed so far under the Bonn Convention. It was concluded on 16 June 1995 at The Hague, the Netherlands and entered into force on 1 November 1999 after the required number of at least fourteen...
) applies.
External links
- Oiseaux Photos