Broad-billed sandpiper
Calidris falcinellus
Tom NatureWalks · Batumi, Adjara Georgia field photo
Key facts in one look
- Diet
- Worms, molluscs, crustaceans and insects
- Status in Georgia
- Passage migrant
- Recorded regions
- Adjara; Kvemo Kartli; Abkhazia
- Size
- About 17 cm
- Habitat
- Mudflats and lakeshores
- Family
- Scolopacidae
- Protection
- Globally VU (2024)
The broad-billed sandpiper (Calidris falcinellus) is a small wader that breeds in the bogs of Scandinavia and Siberia. In Georgia it is a passage migrant, seen most often in August and September. It is about 17 cm long and weighs 35–40 g: a little larger than a stint and slightly smaller than a dunlin. The key mark is on the head: two pale stripes run above each eye, with a dark stripe between them. The bill is long and heavy and droops slightly at the tip. It is harmless to people. In Georgia it is seen most often in Adjara, near Batumi and in the Chorokhi delta. It is also seen in Kvemo Kartli at Lake Kumisi and in Abkhazia at Lake Inkiti. Globally it is assessed as Vulnerable (VU, 2024), because its numbers have probably fallen by more than 30% over the last 13 years.
Identification
Broad-billed sandpiper: how to identify it
A small, short-legged wader with a long, heavy bill drooping at the tip. It has a double white eyebrow and a dark crown stripe. In Georgia it is seen on muddy and sandy shores, together with other waders.
It is about 17 cm long and weighs 35–40 g. The legs are short and the bill is long, thick at the base and slightly drooped at the tip, so the bird looks front-heavy. The legs are dark greenish. In flight the leading edge of the wing is dark, a narrow white bar runs along the wing, and the dark rump has white sides.
In every plumage the head shows a double eyebrow: two pale stripes run above each eye, with a dark stripe on the crown between the upper pale stripes. In breeding plumage this stripe turns black and the back is dark, mottled rufous-brown. In winter plumage it is grey-brown and scaly above, white below, with fine dark spots on the breast. Juveniles have rufous edges to the back feathers and a white "V" on the back. In Georgia both adults and juveniles pass through in August.
The dunlin (Calidris alpina) has a similar bill, but a single, poorly defined eyebrow and longer black legs. The curlew sandpiper's (Calidris ferruginea) bill is curved along its whole length, not only at the tip, its legs are longer, its rump is white and its head has no stripes. The call is a buzzing "chreeit" or "prrr".
Colour
Swatches are illustrative. Do not identify a species by colour alone.
Often confused with
The broad-billed sandpiper breeds in northern bogs: in Scandinavia and north-west Russia in the wettest parts of open peat bogs, and in Siberia in wet tundra. On migration it prefers the muddy and boggy shores of lakes and pools, as well as fresh, brackish and saline lagoons, temporary marshes and flooded fields. It winters mainly on large, soft coastal mudflats, in lagoons and on saltpans. In Georgia it is seen most often in Adjara, near Batumi and in the Chorokhi delta, on the seashore and at the river mouth. It is also seen in Kvemo Kartli at Lake Kumisi and its surroundings, and in Abkhazia at Lake Inkiti near Pitsunda and near Gagra. In Samegrelo near Poti and in Guria, in Lanchkhuti Municipality, only single birds have been seen.
The broad-billed sandpiper map combines public iNaturalist observations. Regions are taken from the records-by-region table, and the status column separates regions with enough records from regions with too few records. Most records fall in August and September, during the autumn migration. Record counts reflect observation effort rather than population density.
Data: Reptiles.ge + iNaturalist · Methodology
- Region with records
It eats almost anything it finds in mud and water. On the coast it takes marine worms, small bivalves and snails, and crustaceans such as amphipods. It also eats insects and their larvae, such as beetles, flies, grasshoppers and ants. Sometimes it eats the seeds of aquatic plants too.
It is a full migrant. It moves on a broad front in short flights, stopping at many sites on the way. From Scandinavia the adults leave in July and the juveniles in August. They stop over on the coasts of the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea and the Middle East, and winter in East Africa, Arabia and India. They return from mid-April to early June. In Georgia it is seen mainly in August and September; in May and June only single birds have been seen. It usually travels alone or in small groups, often with dunlins and other waders. It probes the mud vertically with its bill and feeds more slowly than stints. In Scandinavia it breeds in June, in loose colonies of 2–10 nests, usually 80–100 m apart. The nest sits on a sedge or moss cushion, well above the water level. It lays 4 eggs.
Globally the broad-billed sandpiper is assessed as Vulnerable (VU, 2024). There are about 96,000–136,000 mature birds. Over the last three generations, 13 years, numbers have probably fallen by more than 30%, although data are scarce. At least half of the breeding population is in Finland, where the drainage of peat bogs for forestry is considered the main threat. At stopover and wintering sites the threats are coastal land reclamation, hunting and disturbance. It is not on the 2014 Red List of Georgia. In an updated assessment (2021) that has not yet been approved, its risk in Georgia is rated low (LC) and its numbers stable. That assessment was made before the global status changed in 2024.
Titouan Roguet · Elena Shnayder · Tom NatureWalks · Nastya Klimova · Oscar Hazell · Denis Severin · Giorgi Natsvlishvili · Marat Adiev
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Yes, on migration. It is seen most often in August and September; in May and June only single birds have been seen.
Most often in Adjara, near Batumi and in the Chorokhi delta. Also in Kvemo Kartli at Lake Kumisi and in Abkhazia at Lake Inkiti. Look on muddy shores among other waders.
It is a small, short-legged wader with a long, heavy bill drooping at the tip. The key mark is the double white eyebrow: two pale stripes above each eye and a dark stripe on the crown.
The dunlin has a single, poorly defined eyebrow and longer black legs. The broad-billed sandpiper is a little smaller and has a clear double stripe on the head.
It is about 17 cm long and weighs 35–40 g.
Marine worms, small molluscs, crustaceans, insects and their larvae, and sometimes the seeds of aquatic plants.
The broad-billed sandpiper is harmless to people. Globally it is assessed as Vulnerable because its numbers are falling. It is not on the 2014 Red List of Georgia. Do not disturb flocks of birds on the shore.
References
What this profile is based on
Species profiles are compiled from peer-reviewed literature and established biodiversity databases, and are reviewed as new taxonomic and conservation data become available.
Prepared by the Reptiles.ge editorial team from the sources listed here.
