Sandpiper

The Scolopacidae family of waders and shorebirds includes sandpipers. They include various species known as sandpipers, as well as curlews and snipes. The majority of species feed on tiny invertebrates plucked from the mud or soil. Various bill lengths allow different species to eat in the same coastal area without competing for food.

Sandpiper birds are common birds that can be observed sprinting along beaches and tidal mud flats along the water's edge. The brown upper body of the common sandpiper contrasts with the white underside. Its wingtips reach halfway back to its tail when it is at rest. Although the bird is a European and Asian species, it is closely related to the American spotted sandpiper. Although the common sandpiper migrates, it can be found in comparable habitats all year. Sandpipers reside beside rivers, ponds, and lakes in upland areas. Common Sandpiper birds are tiny to medium-sized birds with long legs that they employ to their advantage. When seen racing in bunches, the birds appear to have a surprising level of coordination. Sandpipers eat crustaceans, insects, worms, and other coastal organisms that they find on the ground. They locate them by pecking and probing them with their little bills. 

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Physical Characteristics

Sandpipers range in size from 4.7 to 26 inches (12 to 66 centimetres) in length and weigh anywhere between 0.5 and 48 ounces (14.5 to 1,360 gms). The size and shape of the bill varies greatly among the species, and is mostly determined by the type of food consumed. Long or short bills, straight bills, upwardly curved bills, or downwardly curved bills are all characteristics of different sandpiper species. There are other more unique bills in the family, such as wedge-shaped and spoon-shaped bills. The bodies of some sandpipers are slim, while others are fat. Short tails, long necks, long legs, and partially webbed toes are found in most species. The wings are usually quite long. Many sandpipers are coloured to blend in with their surroundings, but during the breeding season, several species grow brighter black or reddish-hued patches. Females and males of several sandpiper species look very similar. There are, however, exceptions. During the breeding season, the male in the ruff, for example, is 25% larger than the female and has unique feathers around his head and neck. Sandpipers' young are usually coloured to blend in with their surroundings.

Range & Habitat

Except for Antarctica, Sandpiper birds can be found on every continent. Sandpipers breed primarily in the Northern Hemisphere and migrate to the tropics or the Southern Hemisphere for the winter. In the tropics, only a limited number of sandpipers reproduce. The sandpiper family comprises species that breed at the farthest north of any bird family, including Franz Joseph Land, the Zemlya Islands, and Greenland's northernmost tip.

Although certain species prefer to breed in coastal saltwater marshes, most sandpipers breed in inland freshwater wetlands. Marshes, swamps, and wet grassland ecosystems are all home to snipes. Curlews frequent forest, tundra, grassland, farming, and lakeside habitats. In northern climates, certain sandpiper species breed on gravelly or stony tundra, treeless plains. Woodcocks live in deciduous forests, which have four seasons and lose their leaves in the autumn. Tropical wetlands like river mouths, lakeshores, and marshes are popular wintering places for sandpipers. The phalarope is unique in that it is a pelagic bird, meaning it spends the winter on the open ocean.

Diet

Sandpiper birds consume worms, mollusks, crustaceans, insects, and spiders, which are invertebrates with no backbones. They also devour vertebrates, or backboned animals, such as tiny fish and amphibians. At certain seasons of the year, when insect prey is scarce, some species will eat plant material. Berries, rice, seeds, and green shoots are examples of plant material that can be consumed.

Food is usually pecked at by sandpiper species with short bills. Snipes and woodcocks use their bills to probe the mud for food. Shanks chase fish in shallow water while submerging their bills. They've been seen to work together to herd huge schools of small fish into shallow water. Phalaropes and a few other species focus on invertebrates like shrimp and copepods, which they pluck from the water. A few family members have their own feeding habits. Turnstones, for example, flip over stones and shells in search of prey, while the Terek sandpiper chases small tunnelling crabs.

Reproduction

Many sandpiper species feed and rest in big flocks during the nonbreeding season. Sandpipers migrate in big flocks of a single species as well. Some sandpipers travel over thousands of miles, having stored up massive fat stores to help them survive that long.

Most sandpipers are territorial throughout the breeding season, defending areas of land from other pairs. However, a few species, such as the Asian dowitcher, common redshank, and several godwits and curlews, reproduce in breeding colonies. During the breeding season, most sandpiper species are monogamous, with a single male mating with a single female. The mating habit of the Eurasian woodcock, white-rumped sandpiper, sharp-tailed sandpiper, and numerous other species is described as polygyny, or a single male mating with multiple females. The spotted sandpiper and some phalaropes have polyandry, which is defined as a single female mating with multiple males. Females defend territory in phalaropes, whereas males look after the nests and chicks on their own.

Lifestyle

Singing in flight and displays connected to locating a location to build the pair's nest are the most common forms of courtship in sandpipers. The ruff, buff-breasted sandpiper, and great snipe, for example, have leks, which are particular locations where males gather to demonstrate for females. Females go to the lek to find a mate and a partner. Males do not engage in the caring of eggs or young in leek species that are polygynous. The most frequent type of sandpiper nest is a shallow indentation in the ground that is lined with plants. Some species, on the other hand, construct more complex nests or reuse old tree nests that have been abandoned by other birds. Females lay four eggs at a time on average, while some species only lay two or three. Eggs are often pale with brown or black patterns to blend in with their surroundings. After around three weeks, the chicks hatch. Sandpiper chicks are precocial, which means they hatch able to move and with down covering. Within a day of hatching, the chicks normally depart the nest. Other species, such as woodcocks and snipes, do not feed their young. Sandpiper parents, on the other hand, protect their young from predators by acting injured or attempting to imitate rodents by fluffing up their feathers, fleeing, and making squeaking noises. However, in most sandpipers, only a few than half the chicks survive in their first year.

Humans Interaction

Snipe and woodcock, in particular, are regularly targeted for food and sport. Some sandpipers are considered pests because they devour crops, especially rice, while others assist farmers by consuming enormous numbers of insects. Sandpipers too have played a central role in human folklore. Because the arrival of the birds signals the start of the rainy season, one group of Australian Aborigines performs a "sandpiper dance." Residents of the Chukchi Peninsula in Russia's Far East replicate the stunning dance of lekking male ruffs.

Conservation status

Since 1600, two sandpiper species have been recorded to become extinct. These are Tahiti's white-winged sandpipers and Moorea's Ellis's sandpipers. Both were most likely wiped out by rats introduced by humans to their island habitats. The Eskimo curlew, which hasn't been seen since the 1980s, and the slender-billed curlew are two of the eighty-six sandpiper species now in existence, both of which are Critically Endangered and face an extremely high risk of extinction. Humans have hunted both species in significant numbers, and both are threatened by habitat loss. The Nordmann's greenshank is critically endangered in the wild, with a significant risk of extinction due to hunting and habitat destruction. The tuamotu sandpiper is critically endangered due to habitat degradation and predators introduced by humans. The spoon-billed sandpiper, bristle-thighed curlew, wood snipe, Chatham snipe, Amami woodcock, and Moluccan woodcock are among the family's Vulnerable species, which face a high risk of extinction. Hunting, habitat damage and disturbance, and predators introduced by humans all have an impact on these species.

Genus Calidris

The genus Calidris includes several sandpipers, as well as other birds including the knot, sanderling, and dunlin, which is also known as the red-backed sandpiper. The tiniest sandpiper is the least sandpiper (C. minutilla), which is less than 15 cm long. It's known as the American stint and can be found in abundance in Alaska, as well as across subarctic Canada to Nova Scotia. It spends the winter on the coasts of Oregon, North Carolina, and South America. The purple sandpiper breeds in the foggy Arctic highlands of eastern North America and northern Europe, and winters in Greenland and the United Kingdom. It has greyish legs and a yellow bill, and it is easily approached in the field. The rufous-necked sandpiper (C. ruficollis) is another Old World species that breeds in Siberia and winters in New Zealand and Tasmania. The white-rumped sandpiper (C. fuscicollis), which breeds in Arctic North America and winters in southern South America, is rusty in the breeding season but grey in the rest of the year. The upland sandpiper (Bartramia longicauda), commonly known as Bartram's sandpiper and, incorrectly, upland plover, is an open-field bird native to North America. It's a slender, gray-streaked bird that eats grasshoppers and other insects and is nearly 30 cm long.

Interesting Facts 

• Except for Antarctica, these birds can be found all around the world. Various species may be found on practically every landmass on the planet. Some species can be found throughout North, Central, and South America. Eurasia, Africa, Australia, and the neighbouring islands are home to other species.

• Sandpipers eat a variety of prey depending on their species. The majority of the species are carnivores, though some do eat seeds or berries on occasion. Crabs, worms, clams, snails, shrimp, insects, and other small invertebrates make up the majority of their prey.

• Human interaction and impact differ greatly amongst species. Some of these birds are badly impacted by human activities, while others have large populations.

• Fun is that, with the sandpiper name there is a community called Sandpiper Shore. This is a diverse and highly motivated group of learners. Also we can find a fictional book with the same name, Sandpiper Shore. 

• These birds are not suitable as pets. They're wild birds who don't like to interact with people. It is also prohibited to own, capture, kill, or harass these birds in most countries.

• Mixed-species exhibitions are ideal for these birds, and a variety of shorebirds frequently share the same enclosure. Their specific needs vary by species, and zookeepers give them everything from small fish to crabs, krill, shrimp, insects, and pellet feed.

• The behaviour of these birds differs greatly from one species to the next. Outside of the breeding season, several species are solitary and do not interact with one another. Most species, on the other hand, are more social and live in flocks of various sizes.

• There are so many Hotels and Condos with a sandpiper name, called Sandpiper Dunes around the world. These Sandpiper Dunes are predominantly located in seashores. 

Conclusion

The sandpiper is one of many shorebirds in the Scolopacidae family (order Charadriiformes), which also includes woodcocks and snipes. Sandpipers are a group of tiny to medium-sized birds that flock to beaches and inland mud flats during migration. They range in size from 15 to 30 cm (6 to 12 inches) in length. Sandpipers have long beaks and legs, as well as long, narrow wings and short tails. On the upperparts, they have an intricate “dead-grass” pattern of browns, buffs, and blacks, with white or cream coloration below. In the autumn, they are usually paler than in the spring. Although certain species have distinctive characteristics such as speckled breasts, white rump bands, or contrasting throat patches, their overall look is identical, making identification notoriously difficult. The smallest sandpipers, known as peep, stint, or oxeyes, are the most baffling.