Dunlin (Calidris alpina)

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A Field Guide to Eastern Birds. by Roger Tory Peterson.

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Summer Plumage

Winter Plumage

Color Photographs: © by and courtesy of John Cassady

Dunlin (Calidris alpina)

Identification: Length from tip of bill to tip of tail 8.5 inches.

Summer Plumage: Back rusty-brown, mottled with black. Wings with outer margin grayer than the back. Head with a dark brown crown. Side of face white, striate with gray. Bill long, narrow, gently curved downward. Breast and throat white, striate with black. Belly white with a large black patch in the center. Legs dark.

Winter Plumage: Back and wings gray or gray-black. Crown dark gray, side light gray. Otherwise as in summer pluamge.

Similar Species:  The summer plumage Dunlin is unmistakable because of the large, black blotch on the underside. The winter plumage Dunlin is gray, but larger than the smaller sandpipers and has a distinctly downcurved bill. However, the rare Eurasian Curlew Sandpiper in winter plumage is nearly indistinguishable from its Dunlin counterpart. The Curlew Sandpiper in winter plumage has a white rump. However, the white rump is rarely seen except when the bird is flying.

Breeding Range (see map below): The Dunlin breeds in the far northern tundra of Canada and Alaska. The species also occurs in northern Europe and Asia.

Overwintering Range:  This species overwinters along the coastlines of western Canada and all of the United States.

Habitat: The Dunlin breeds on the arctic tundra. Overwintering and migrating individuals are found on beaches, mudflats, and the shores of lakes and rivers.

Food: Aquatic invertebrates.

Behavior: The Dunlin is not easily disturbed and can sometimes be closely approached. The voice is a low cheep.

Reproduction:  The clutch consists of 4 brown-spotted olive-green eggs. The eggs are laid in a clump of grass or hammock.