Sandpipers and Allies

ORDER: CHARADRIIFORMES - FAMILY: SCOLOPACIDAE

91 Species worldwide 34 in Colombia + 2 Vagrant

Sandpipers and their allies are a diverse group of small to medium-sized shorebirds that are known for their slender bodies, long legs, and long, thin bills. They belong to the family Scolopacidae, which includes various species such as sandpipers, snipes, phalaropes, godwits, and dowitchers. Here are some key points about sandpipers and their allies: Read in Spanish

Physical Characteristics: Sandpipers and their allies have adapted to their coastal and wetland habitats with features like long legs for wading in shallow water, long bills for probing in mud or sand for food, and streamlined bodies for efficient flight. Their plumage is often cryptic, providing camouflage from predators.

Habitat: These birds are commonly found in a variety of coastal, estuarine, and freshwater habitats, including sandy beaches, mudflats, marshes, and tundra. They are often seen foraging along shorelines or in shallow water searching for invertebrates such as worms, crustaceans, and mollusks.

Diet: Sandpipers and their allies are primarily carnivorous, feeding on a variety of small invertebrates. They use their sensitive bills to detect and capture prey hidden in the mud or sand. Some species also feed by probing into the mud or water to find food.

Behavior: These birds exhibit various foraging behaviors, including probing, pecking, and surface feeding. They often move quickly and restlessly along the shorelines, using their agile legs to chase after prey. Many species also perform elaborate courtship displays during the breeding season.

Migration: Sandpipers and their allies are known for their remarkable migrations, with many species traveling long distances between their breeding and wintering grounds. Some species undertake epic journeys, flying thousands of miles across continents and oceans to reach their destinations.

Conservation: Many species of sandpipers and their allies are facing threats such as habitat loss, pollution, climate change, and disturbance at their breeding and wintering sites. Conservation efforts are focused on protecting their critical habitats, especially key stopover sites along migration routes, and mitigating human-induced threats. Sandpipers and their allied species play important ecological roles in coastal and wetland ecosystems worldwide.

Upland Sandpiper, Bartramia longicauda, Correlimos Sabanero

Upland and Sandpiper

Bartramia longicauda
Spanish Name: Correlimos Sabanero

Size: 12 in | 30 cm
Habitat: Dry short pasture grassland only.
Height: < 3500m

Photo: © Tyler Greenly iStock/Getty Images Plus

Whimbrel

Numenius phaeopus
Spanish Name: Zarapito Trinador

Size: 18 in | 46 cm
Habitat: Mangroves, estuaries.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © Eduardo Lago V.

Long-billed Curlew

Numenius americanus
Spanish Name: Zarapito Americano

Size: 23 in | 58 cm
Habitat: Large expanses of open grassland, ranging from shortgrass prairies to mixed-grass prairies.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © Wildnerdpix iStock/Getty Images Plus

Marbled Godwit

Limosa fedoa
Spanish Name: Ajuga Moteada

Size: 18 in | 46 cm
Habitat: Wet grasslands, prairie potholes, and other freshwater wetland environments that provide a mix of grass and water.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © Jeff Timmons eBird S37747366 Macaulay Library ML 63269531

Hudsonian Godwit

Limosa haemastica
Spanish Name: Aguja Parda

Size: 15.5 in | 39 cm
Habitat: Coastal estuaries, mudflats, lagoons, and salt marshes. These areas provide ample food resources such as invertebrates.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © mirceax iStock/Getty Images Plus

Ruddy Turnstone

Arenaria interpres
Spanish Name: Vuelvepiedras rojizo

Size: 9.5 in | 24 cm
Habitat: Rocky coastal areas with sparse vegetation, nesting on the ground among stones and shrubs.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © Jay McGowan eBird S23786037 Macaulay Library ML 45254791

Red Knot

Calidris canutus
Spanish Name: Playero Rojizo

Size: 10.5 in | 27 cm
Habitat: Dry, sparsely vegetated areas, often on gravelly or rocky sites.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © neil bowman iStock/Getty Images Plus

Surfbird

Calidris virgata
Spanish Name: Chorlo de Rompientes

Size: 10 in | 25 cm
Habitat: Rocky shorelines, wave-swept ledges, and intertidal zones where they can forage for food.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © OldFulica iStock/Getty Images Plus

Ruff

Calidris pugnans
Spanish Name: Combatiente

Size: 11 in | 28 cm
Habitat: A variety of wetland habitats, estuaries, flooded fields, mudflats, and freshwater marshes.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © MikeLane45 iStock/Getty Images Plus

Stilt Sandpiper

Calidris himantopus
Spanish Name: Playero Patilargo

Size: 8.5 in | 22 cm
Habitat: Freshwater marshes, flooded fields, lagoons, and coastal mudflats.
Height: <1000 m

Photo: © James Corgill eBird S136926920 Macaulay Library ML 569877931

Sanderling

Calidris alba
Spanish Name: Playero Blanco

Size: 8 in | 20 cm
Habitat: Dry, rocky, or gravelly areas near freshwater bodies.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © Jonathan Lugo eBird S31711603 Macaulay Library ML 51358281

Dunlin

Calidris alpina
Spanish Name: Playero Buchinegro

Size: 8.5 in | 22 cm
Habitat: Boggy areas for breeding, often near lakes, rivers, or coastal shorelines.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © MikeLane45 iStock/Getty Images Plus

Baird’s Sandpiper

Calidris bairdii
Spanish Name: Playero Patinegro

Size: 7.5 in | 19 cm
Habitat: Grasslands and the shores of high-altitude lakes and marshes.
Height: <3500 m

Photo: © drferry iStock/Getty Images Plus

Least Sandpiper

Calidris minutilla
Spanish Name: Playero Diminuto

Size: 6 in | 15 cm
Habitat: Coastal mudflats, estuaries, sandy beaches, and inland wetlands such as marshes and wet meadows.
Height: <3400 m

Photo: © Stephen Waycott iStock/Getty Images Plus

White-rumped Sandpiper

Calidris fuscicollis
Spanish Name: Playero Culiblanco

Size: 7.5 in | 19 cm
Habitat: Coastal wetlands, mudflats, sandy beaches, and inland water bodies such as marshes and lagoons.
Height: <2600 m

Photo: © Carol Hamilton iStock/Getty Images Plus

Buff-breasted Sandpiper

Calidris subruficollis
Spanish Name: Playero Canelo

Size: 8.3 in | 21 cm
Habitat: open habitats such as grasslands, and agricultural fields
Height: <2900 m

Photo: © Ian Davies eBird S46936088 Macaulay Library ML 110171801

Pectoral Sandpiper

Calidris melanotos
Spanish Name: Playero Pectoral

Size: 8.5 in | 22 cm
Habitat: Wet grasslands, agricultural fields, marshes, and mudflats.
Height: <3000 m

Photo: © Carol Hamilton iStock/Getty Images Plus

Semipalmate Sandpiper

Calidris pusilla
Spanish Name: Playero Semipalmado

Size: 6.3 in | 16 cm
Habitat: Sandy beaches, coastal mudflats.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © Tyler Ficker eBird S46383277 Macaulay Library ML 107458521

Western Sandpiper

Calidris mauri
Spanish Name: Playero Occidental

Size: 6.3 in | 16 cm
Habitat: Mudflats, estuaries, sandy beaches, and mangrove areas.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © Nancy Strohm iStock/Getty Images Plus

Short-billed Dowitcher

Limnodromus griseus
Spanish Name: Becasa Piquicorta

Size: 11 in | 28 cm
Habitat: Wet, grassy coastal areas, tundra, and forested wetlands
Height: <100 m

Photo: © Dorian Anderson eBird S55259417 Macaulay Library ML 153902891

Long-billed Dowitcher

Limnodromus scolopaceus
Spanish Name: Becasa Piquilarga

Size: 11.5 in | 29 cm
Habitat: Wet, grassy areas close to ponds, marshes, and other water sources.
Height: <100 m

Photo: © jamesvancouver iStock/Getty Images Plus

Imperial Snipe

Gallinago imperialis
Spanish Name: Becasina Imperial

Size: 12 in | 30 cm
Habitat: Páramo and temperate forest ecosystems, often favoring bogs, marshes, and other wetland areas within these regions.
Height: 3000 - 3700 m

Photo: © Chris Venetz | Ornis Birding Expeditions eBird S132272776 Macaulay Library ML 551655721

Jameson’s Snipe

Gallinago jamesoni
Spanish Name: Becasina Andina

Size: 12 in | 30 cm
Habitat: High-altitude marshes, bogs, and swamps.
Height: 2200 - 4200 m

Photo: © Angus Pritchard eBird S46449907 Macaulay Library ML 121186401

Wilson’s Snipe

Gallinago delicata
Spanish Name: Becasina Común

Size: 10.5 in | 27 cm
Habitat: Wetlands, marshes, bogs, damp meadows, and the edges of ponds and streams.
Height: <3900 m

Photo: © passion4nature iStock/Getty Images Plus

South American Snipe

Gallinago paraguaiae
Spanish Name: Becasina Suramericana

Size: 10 in | 25 cm
Habitat: Marshes, wet meadows, the edges of lakes and rivers, and other freshwater wetlands.
Height: <400 m

Noble Snipe

Gallinago nobilis
Spanish Name: Becasina Paramuna

Size: 13 in | 33 cm
Habitat: Wet grasslands, marshes, and bog at elevations from 2,400 to 4,200 meters (7,875 to 13,780 feet). Páramo ecosystems, a type of high-altitude tropical grassland.
Height: 2500 - 4100m

Giant Snipe

Gallinago undulata
Spanish Name: Becasina Gigante

Size: 15 in | 38 cm
Habitat: Swamps, marshes, lowland wet grasslands, and the edges of rivers and lakes. It is often associated with habitats that offer dense vegetation for cover.
Height: <1000 m

Wilson’s Phalarope

Steganopus tricolor
Spanish Name: Faloropo Tricolor

Size: 9 in | 23 cm
Habitat: Shallow wetlands, marshes, and ponds with abundant vegetation.
Height: <3000 m

Red-necked Phalarope

Phalaropus lobatus
Spanish Name: Faloropo Cuellirrojo

Size: 8 in | 20 cm
Habitat: Wetlands, bogs, and shallow ponds where they can find abundant insect prey.
Height: <100 m

Red Phalarope

Phalaropus fulicarius
Spanish Name: Faloropo Colorado

Size: 8.5 in | 22 cm
Habitat: Tropical and subtropical oceanic waters, often found far offshore.
Height: Sea level

Spotted Sandpiper

Actitis macularius
Spanish Name: Andarríos Manchado

Size: 7.5 in | 19 cm
Habitat: Freshwater habitats, such as streams, rivers, ponds, lakeshores, and marshes, often opting for areas with minimal human disturbance and ample vegetation.
Height: <3400 m

Solitary Sandpiper

Tringa solitaria
Spanish Name: Andarríos Solitario

Size: 8.5 in | 22 cm
Habitat: Wetland habitats, such as muskegs, bogs, and forested ponds, where they can find nesting sites and food resources.
Height: <3400 m

Wandering Tattler

Tringa incana
Spanish Name: Playero Errante

Size: 11 in | 28 cm
Habitat: Rocky shorelines, reefs, beaches, and coral atolls. Less commonly found in sandy or muddy environments.
Height: <100 m

Willet

Tringa semipalmata
Spanish Name: Playero Aliblanco

Size: 15 in | 38 cm
Habitat: Shallow water or on tidal mudflats, mangroves.
Height: <100 m

Lesser Yellowlegs

Tringa flavipes
Spanish Name: Patiamarillo Chico

Size: 10.5 in | 29 cm
Habitat: Wetlands, mudflats, and marshes where they forage for insects, crustaceans, and small fish by probing in shallow water or mud
Height: <3400 m

Great Yellowlegs, Tringa melanoleuca, Patiamarillo Grande

Greater Yellowlegs

Tringa melanoleuca
Spanish Name: Patiamarillo Grande

Size: 14 in | 36 cm
Habitat: Mangroves, intertidal mudflats, beaches.
Height: <3400 m

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