Curlew Sandpiper
Calidris ferruginea
弯嘴滨鹬
Introduction
The Curlew Sandpiper (Calidris ferruginea) is a small wader that breeds in Siberian tundra and migrates to wintering areas across Africa, Asia, and Australasia. During migration, it occurs on coastal mudflats, saltpans, and wetland edges throughout its Afro-Eurasian range. The species has variable plumage, transitioning from grey-brown in non-breeding season to reddish during breeding. A white wingstripe is visible in flight. During breeding, males perform aerial chases and ground courtship displays. The species is monogamous, nesting in shallow scrapes with clutches of 3-4 eggs. Despite having an extremely large range and being common, significant population declines have been recorded at key wintering sites.
Description
A compact wader measuring 21 cm in length with a wingspan of 38-46 cm and weighing approximately 57 grams. The bill measures 32-44 mm and the tarsi are 26-34 mm long. Adults have black bills, dark brown irises, and dark grey to black legs and toes. Non-breeding plumage features brown-grey upperparts with brighter coloration on the head and breast, white underparts with grey streaks, and a mottled appearance from darker feather centers. A distinctive white supercilium contrasts with greyish-brown lores and auriculars. Breeding plumage is dramatically different, with the entire frontside, head, and upper back tinted deep red. The species shows sexual dimorphism in breeding plumage, with males displaying more extensive and intense red coloration. All plumages show a prominent white wingstripe and white rump patch in flight.
Identification
In non-breeding and juvenile plumage, this species resembles stilt sandpipers but lacks their white wingstripe and has darker legs rather than the stilt's distinctive green legs. Compared to dunlins, this species has a more distinct supercilium, a longer and more decurved bill, and a more elegant appearance with longer primary projection. Juvenile curlew sandpipers can be distinguished from juvenile dunlins by the absence of the dunlin's characteristic dark spots on the belly sides. During breeding plumage, confusion is possible with red knots and red phalaropes. Unlike red phalaropes, this species lacks a black crown and white face patch, and does not have a yellow bill. Compared to red knots, it has longer legs and a more slender, curved bill, with a spotted rather than uniformly greyish rump.
Distribution & Habitat
Breeds exclusively in the Siberian Arctic from the Yamal Peninsula to Kolyuchin Bay, occupying lowland tundra near bogs, depressions, and pools from June through August. During migration, it occurs throughout most of Afro-Eurasia, notably absent east of the Verkhoyansk Range and in southern inland Asia. Wintering grounds include coastal west and southern Africa, the Nile Valley, coastal South and Southeast Asia, and coastal regions of Australasia including New Zealand. In North America, it is a regular but rare vagrant, with an average of 17 sightings annually along the Atlantic coast compared to just 2 per year on the Pacific coast. Habitat during winter consists of sheltered mudflats, saltpans, and wetland edges, both coastal and inland, including sewage ponds.
Behavior & Ecology
Forages in large flocks of up to thousands on tidal flats, marshes, and shallow waters, picking prey by sight. Active throughout day and night, though nocturnal foraging decreases as northward migration approaches. Diet consists primarily of insects and invertebrates including crabs, molluscs, and worms, supplemented with seeds. Monogamous, with pairs forming during northward migration. Courtship involves complex aerial chases and ground displays including nest-cup displays and elaborate precopulatory rituals. Males perform 10-15 second songs consisting of introductory notes, trilled doublets, and whine calls. Both sexes give alarm calls and flight calls. Nests are situated at marsh edges or on dry tundra patches. Eggs are incubated solely by the female for 20 days. Chicks are precocial and become independent at 14-20 days. Roosts in large mixed-species flocks on sandspits and lagoon islets.
Conservation
Classified as Vulnerable due to significant population declines. Counts at Langebaan Lagoon in South Africa, a key wintering site, show a 40% decline between 1975 and 2009, with similar trends observed in Australia. These declines are potentially linked to global warming effects at breeding grounds affecting lemming populations, which in turn influences predator pressure on nesting birds. The species has an estimated annual survival rate of 75-80%, with the oldest recorded individual reaching 19 years of age. Conservation measures are coordinated under the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA).
Culture
No specific cultural significance or folklore was documented in the source material.
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
Taxonomy
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Scolopacidae
- Genus
- Calidris
- eBird Code
- cursan
Distribution
breeds drier tundra from Yamal Peninsula to northwestern Chukotskiy Peninsula (northwestern to northeastern Siberia), including New Siberian Islands; winters southern Europe and Africa eastward through southern Asia to Taiwan and Philippines and southward to Melanesia; prone to extreme vagrancy
Data Sources
CBR Notes: IUCN红色名录等级由NT升为VU
Species description from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Bird images and sounds sourced from GBIF, contributed by citizen scientists worldwide under Creative Commons licenses.
Taxonomy data from AviList 2025.