General

Spotted Sandpiper: Medium-sized sandpiper with olive-brown upperparts and white underparts with bold black spots. Eyestripe is white. Wings have white stripes visible in flight. Tail is barred. Female is similar but has larger belly spots. Winter adult and juvenile is duller and lacks spots.

Range and Habitat

Spotted Sandpiper: Breeds from northern Alaska and Canada across most of the continent to southern U.S. Spends winters along the Pacific coast south from British Columbia and across southern states south to South America. Preferred habitats include ponds, streams, and other waterways, both inland and along coasts.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"peet-weet"

Interesting Facts

 The Spotted Sandpiper is the most widespread breeding sandpiper in North America.

 As they forage, they can be recognized by their constant nodding and teetering. It is sometimes called the "teeter-tail".

 The function of their teetering motion has not been determined. Chicks teeter nearly as soon as they hatch. The teetering gets faster when the bird is nervous, but stops when the bird is alarmed, aggressive, or courting.

 A group of sandpipers has many collective nouns, including a "bind", "contradiction", "fling", "hill", and "time-step" of sandpipers.

Author

Gary Owen Dick

Related Birds