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Long-billed Dowitcher

Long-billed Dowitcher

Limnodromus scolopaceus

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The Long-billed Dowitcher is a stocky, medium-sized wader with a very long, straight bill. It breeds on tundra in north-eastern Siberia and Alaska and winters in the southern United States and Central America. In breeding plumage it is rufous below with a mottled dark back, and it shows a large white wedge on the back in flight. Its rapid “sewing-machine” probing is typical when feeding in shallow water.

Did you know?

  • The best clue separating it from the Short-billed Dowitcher is its flight call.
  • The word “dowitcher” comes from an Iroquoian language and was first recorded in 1841.

About the species

Identification

A medium-sized, snipe-like wader with a long, straight dark bill, yellowish legs and a clearly black-and-white barred tail. In summer the upperparts are dark brown and the underparts rufous, finely spotted on the breast; winter plumage is grey. In flight a large white wedge shows on the back. It closely resembles Short-billed Dowitcher; the best mark is the sharp “keek” flight call, and many birds cannot be identified to species in the field.

Family

Scolopacidae

Size

Medium (thrush)

Colours

grey, brown, white

About the habitat

Breeds on wet tundra with sedge meadows, ponds and lakes; on migration and in winter shallow freshwater wetlands, mudflats and flooded fields.

Diet

Mainly aquatic invertebrates – worms, insect larvae and small crustaceans – probed from soft mud in shallow water, with some plant material.

Behaviour

Forages with rapid, repeated jabs of the bill while it is submerged, often in flocks. It nests on the ground and lays four eggs; the female leaves after hatching, and the male alone cares for the chicks. A long-distance migrant, it prefers fresh water over salty, sandy shores.

Sources

Photo: Mike Baird from Morro Bay, USA, CC BY 2.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Limnodromus scolopaceus Mike Baird crop.jpg

Text: Wikipedia (English) + GBIF regional observations + Wikipedia (Finnish), CC BY-SA 4.0; GBIF occurrence data; Wikipedia: CC BY-SA 4.0 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long-billed_dowitcher

See also