Stilt Sandpiper - Calidris himantopus

At Sarasota's "Celery Fields" in April we watched a large group of shorebirds foraging in a shallow fresh water pond. There were about 30 Long-billed Dowitchers in breeding plumage, along with about 15 Lesser Yellowlegs and a scattering of Black-necked Stilts. Out in the middle of the pond I spotted a single gray-backed shorebird with a slightly downcurved bill, feeding like a dowitcher but looking more like a Lesser Yellowlegs, both of which were nearby. Distant photo lacks detail, but good enough for an ID. The local biologist said they see them occasionally in small numbers. Stilt Sandpipers are often seen associating with dowitchers, usually in fresh water.

The Stilt Sandpiper nests way north in the Arctic tundra, then mostly uses the Central Flyway to head to central and South America for the winter. Some will winter along the gulf coast and in Florida. We first saw the Stilt Sandpiper on a memorable trip to Texas with Bob Stewart in April 2005, and some were close enough for good photos. First one is mostly in basic plumage, but with a splash of color behind the eye. Taken at Indian Point Park, Port Aransas, TX (near Corpus Christi).

​ I especially liked the next shot, which shows the adult in breeding plumage, now with black on the back and barring below. Molting birds blurred in the background. Note how the apparent length of the bill changes with even a minor shift in perspective. Nearby were breeding plumage dowitchers, not shown. Photos from 2005 taken with the old Nikon Coolpix 4500, a 4MP "twist-body"point-and-shoot camera.

Taxonomy notes - The Stilt Sandpiper is one of 19 species of shorebirds in the genus Calidris. Common Calidrids seen in California include our Western and Least Sandpipers, plus Sanderling and Dunlin. Less common along the coast are Red Knot, Pectoral Sandpiper, Baird's Sandpiper, Stilt Sandpiper and Rock Sandpiper. Pretty much all of them breed in the Arctic and are long-distance migrants. We've even seen the occasional rarer species in California, such as the Sharp-tailed Sandpiper (Shollenberger Park in Petaluma one year) and Curlew Sandpiper (Yolo Bypass wetlands). Still waiting to see our first Stint!