Bird
Bird
Spotted Sandpiper
Actitis macularius
The Spotted Sandpiper is a small, constantly teetering shorebird that visits Trinidad's shorelines and riverbanks during the northern winter, easily recognised by its habit of bobbing its rear end up and down almost continuously.
The Spotted Sandpiper is a small, constantly teetering shorebird that visits Trinidad's shorelines and riverbanks during the northern winter, easily recognised by its habit of bobbing its rear end up and down almost continuously.
Identification
A small sandpiper around 18 to 20 cm long. In non-breeding plumage, the plumage seen in Trinidad, it is plain grey-brown above and white below without the bold breast spotting of the breeding season, but retains the characteristic constant teetering of the body while walking or standing, a reliable field mark year-round.
Migration
A non-breeding migrant present in Trinidad roughly from August to April, having bred along freshwater shorelines across most of Canada and the United States. It winters from the southern United States through Central America, the Caribbean, and South America, and is absent from Trinidad outside this non-breeding season.
Status in T&T
A common non-breeding visitor to riverbanks, pond edges, mudflats, and rocky shorelines across Trinidad, generally seen singly and often further inland than other shorebirds. Not threatened, and it is protected as a migratory species under the Conservation of Wildlife Act.
