This week’s Bird of the Week, compliments of the Weminuche Audubon Society and Audubon Rockies, is the spotted sandpiper.
The family of birds known as sandpipers is large and diverse, ranging in appearance from tiny, drab birds to large, colorful ones. All are shorebirds with sensitive bills used to probe the sand and mud for small invertebrates. One of these, the spotted sandpiper, is widespread throughout North America and commonly seen here in summer on lakeshores, pond edges, along streams and the river. These birds winter in the southern states and along the Pacific coast or travel as far as southern South America.
A robin-sized bird, it is named for the dark spots covering its white breast in breeding plumage. These spots may disappear by the end of its stay here. The olive brown back is cut by a white notch just in front of the wings. Its teetering gait and constant tail bobbing as it feeds along the shoreline are distinctive. In addition to probing with its bill, the spotted sandpiper will pick insects off plants and snap at airborne ones. It is usually seen alone.
The roles of the sexes are reversed in spotted sandpipers. It is the slightly larger female who performs courtship displays and aggressively defends her breeding territory. She may mate with several males and leave them to incubate the eggs and raise the young. This behavior, called polyandry, is seen in only about 1 percent of all bird species.
For information on local bird-watching events, visit www.weminucheaudubon.org and www.facebook.com/weminucheaudubon/.
