Baird's Sandpiper (Calidris bairdii)

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

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Color Photograph: © by and courtesy of John Cassady

Color Photograph: © by and courtesy of Robert Benson

Baird's Sandpiper (Calidris bairdii)

Identification: Length from tip of bill to tip of tail 7.5 inches. Back, wings, and crown of the head mottled with brown and dark brown. Head with a vague, light band over the eye and a vague dark line through the eye. Bill black, straight. Throat, sides, and breast suffused with buff, with poorly defined, vertical rows of dark brown spots. Wings longer than the tail, giving the bird a pointed look. Belly white. Rump not white. Legs dark brown to gray.

Similar Species:  Baird's Sandpiper is most likely to be confused with the White-rumped Sandpiper. Both are of the same size and build. However Baird's Sandpiper lacks a white rump and the breast and sides have a tan shading lacking in the White-rumped Sandpiper. Baird's Sandpiper is most similar in coloration to the Least Sandpiper. However the Least Sandpiper is a smaller bird (6 inches in length) and has yellow legs. Both the Semipalmated Sandpiper and the Western Sandpiper are smaller species and lack the extensive buff suffusion to the breast.

Breeding Range (see map below): Baird's Sandpiper is found on the far northern tundra of Canada and Alaska.

Overwintering Range:  Southern South America.

Habitat: Baird's Sandpiper is found on tundra during the breeding season. During migration this species is found in wet meadows and along the shores of lakes and rivers.

Food: Aquatic invertebrates.

Behavior: Baird's Sandpiper is among the rarest of the small sandpiper species and is commonly mistaken for one of the more common species. The voice is a soft kreep.

Reproduction:  The clutch consists of 4 brown-spotted tan eggs. The eggs are laid in a ground depression, often among groups of rocks.