Least Sandpiper

Shorebird Migration Has Started  

Shorebirds are beginning to migrate south.  Nesting is completed and it is time for our summer visitors to begin their long trek to wintering grounds.

Least Sandpiper

 Our smallest 'peep' (small North American sandpiper) is the Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla.  It is seen now in flocks of migrating shorebirds along our beaches and muddy estuaries.  It is usually with flocks of Semipalmated Sandpipers and Semipalmated Plovers.  It is smaller than the Semipalmated Sandpiper from which it needs to be distinguished.  It is also browner, darker in colour, its bill is shorter and it has dull, yellow legs compared to the black legs of the Semipalmated Sandpiper.  In the photo below note the rufous brown coloration and the yellow legs.

Least Sandpiper

The Least Sandpiper breeds in the far north, Alaska eastward to northern Labrador and Newfoundland.  It winters in the southern USA and Central America.  Many birds spend time in our province on their way south to feed on aquatic and marine insects, seeds and invertebrates.

Least Sandpiper

The Least Sandpiper prefers muddy habitats more than sandy beaches.  It is often found on higher ground or in estuaries and rivulets.  It feeds randomly by probing mud for its preferred foods.  It needs to feed heavily while here in order to build up body fat reserves in order to have enough energy to fly thousands of kilometres south.  While feeding and flying it often emits its characteristic 'preep' sound.

Least Sandpiper

Migrating shorebirds are amassing on beaches in the Bay of Fundy now.  A good place to observe them is at Johnson's Mills.  There is an Interpretive Centre there and staff anxious to show you this natural wonder.  It is awe-inspiring to witness the flocks of hundreds of thousands of shorebirds and watch their movements.  They are there feeding and stocking up on energy before moving further south.  We are proud to have unpolluted muddy estuaries and marine mudflats from which they can glean their preferred foods.  It is a valuable resource for them and us!

Least Sandpiper