Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus)

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

Return to Eastern Shorebirds

Color Photograph: © by and courtesy of Marcus Martin

Color Photograph: H.R. Spendelow., U.S. Geological Survey

Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus)

Identification: Length from tip of bill to tip of tail 17 inches. A large shorebird with a long, thin, down-curved bill. Coloration mottled brown. Head with a brown crown with a thin, central, white line. A wide white band running between the crown and the eye. Eye with a black line running through it. Bill long, narrow, curved downward. neck and breast streaked with brown. Underside dull light gray. Legs elongate, gray.

Similar Species:  The Long-billed Curlew is a similar, but much larger bird (23 inches in length). The bill is longer than that of the Whimbrel. The Marbled Godwit is similar in size and coloration. However its bill is long and narrow and straight to slightly upturned, not bent downward.

Breeding Range (see map below): The Whimbrel breeds in the far northern tundra regions of Alaska and Yukon as well as along the shores of Hudsons Bay. The species is also found in northern Europe and Asia.

Overwintering Range:  This species overwinters along the coasts of the United States from Virginia to southeastern Texas and along the Pacific Coast of California and Oregon. Also overwinters in parts of the tropical New World.

Habitat: The Whimbrel is found on the tundra during the breeding season. Overwintering birds are found in coastal salt marshes and mudflats.

Food: Insects and marine invertebrates.

Behavior: The Whimbrel is a secretive and wary bird. The voice is a short, sweet whistle repeated 6 to 7 times.

Reproduction:  The clutch consists of 4 olive eggs heavily blotched with brown. The eggs are laid in a ground depression lined with moss.