Notable Shorebirds in Washington:

Charaedriidae Family

Charadrius vociferus
(killdeer or little ringed plover)

Photo by Tom Greer

This bird is commonly seen, because it nests in locations readily accessible to people.  There eggs are a distinctive white with black and gray speckles to easily blend into the ground nesting sites.  They make an elaborate “broken-wing” display to lead predators away from their well camouflages hatchlings and eggs.

Photo by Tom Greer

Identifying features:

• Short, black bill
• Distinctive double black neck ring
• Chicks and juveniles have only one black neck ring
• Adults have no seasonal plumage changes
• Small size – roughly 10 inches from head to tail
• Sounds: tir-eeee on ground, and kill-deer made by males during mating season

Habitat preferences:

They prefer wet grasslands for breeding, but non-breeding birds will be found out in the open.  Their range includes Oregon, Washington, Canada and Southern Alaska and extends well into the Midwestern states.

(Paulson 2005, O’Brien et al. 2006)

Pluvialis squatarola (black bellied plover)

Photo by Tom Greer

This is a bird that is very wary of humans, so you will probably need binoculars to get a good look at it.  In winter, or non-breeding plumage, they are gray-brown and drab like sandpipers, but during breeding season their plumage becomes gray and white on their backs with a distinct black belly.  They feed on polychaete worms and small bivalves pulled out of their burrows, but they have also been seen feeding on small animals in the shallows.

Identifying features:

• Largest of the plovers – 10.5 to 13.5 inches
• Sounds: plee o weee
• Short black bill and black legs
• In flight, they have black wing pits, white tail and rump
• Non-breeding plumage
• Back is a mottled brown-gray
• Belly is white
• Breeding plumage
• Back is mottled gray, black and white
• White stripe extending from cap on forehead under wing and around under the tail
• Belly is black
• Juvenile plumage
• Very similar to non-breeding plumage
• Back is more intermixed with brown and gold with very little gray

Habitat preferences:

They are most often seen on the mud flats of estuaries, but they are also seen on sandy beaches on the outer coast.  They are the second most common shorebird seen on the mudflats in the winter on the northern coast.  They also frequent the habitat of killdeers in moist fields.

(Paulson 1993, Peterson 1990, Morse et al. 2003)

Haematopodidae Family

Haemtopus bachmani
(black oystercatcher)

Photo by Stephen Dowland

This distinctive bird blends in very well on the rocky shorelines it prefers.  Its dark, almost black, plumage allows it to melt into the dark colored rocks of the Pacific coast.  However, if it turns and looks at you, the vibrant, orange long-bill will stand out even from quite a distance.  Though it is named an oystercatcher, it feeds primarily on limpets and mussels found on the rocky shores.  The sharp bill pries limpets off rocks and a quick jab effectively disables mussels.

Identifying features:

• Nearly black plumage over entire body
• Bright red-orange, long narrow bill
• Yellow iris with red eyelid
• Pale pink legs
• Roughly 16 inches
• Females are slightly larger than males
• Sounds – wheep wheep

Habitat preferences:

These birds prefer the rocky coast line where their primary food sources are readily available.  Pairs lay their eggs above the high tideline on the rocky shore and where they take turns incubating their two to three eggs during the summer months.  They prefer un-vegetated rocky islands.

(Paulson 1993, Paulson 2005, O’Brien et al. 2006)

Other common shorebirds in Washington

Charadriidae Family

Charadrius semipalmatus
(semipalmated plover)

Photo by Robert Hughes

Scolopacidae Family

Tringa melanoleuca
(greater yellowlegs)

Photo by Tim Avery

Calidris alba (sanderling)

Photo by Ron Wolf

Heteroscelus incanus (wandering tattler)

Photo by Ron Wolf

Numenius phaeops (whimbrel)

Photo by Ron Wolf

(Paulson 2005, O’Brien et al. 2006)

This web page is part of the UWT Marine Ecology 2008 Class Project.

Web page by Holly C. Beimler: Environmental Studies, Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, University of Washington Tacoma.