Pectoral Sandpiper?

[Dave Leroy]

This my guess, but I am not a very good guesser. Photo was taken yesterday morning on Boundary Bay, near Vancouver BC. There were some other sandpipers around, however this bird appeared a bit larger, more erect and possibly solitary. Dave

[Paul Burgess]

I would agree. Pectoral sandpiper has the yellow legs, yellow base of bill, and breast striking that ends abruptly; all of which this bird shows. I'm no expert, though.

-Paul

[Declan Troy]

You guessed good this time Dave. The other likely yellow legged sandpiper you could see would have been Least Sandpiper and that would have been the smallest shorebird around (and differ in some other marks as well).

[Dave Leroy]

Thanks Guys. I have had three firsts the past two days including a Rogue's Pipit, which I posted in Avian and a Greater White-fronted Goose so am feeling pretty lucky. Dave

[Arthur Morris]

You guessed good this time Dave. The other likely yellow legged sandpiper you could see would have been Least Sandpiper and that would have been the smallest shorebird around (and differ in some other marks as well).

Declan, Be careful! Juvenile Sharp-tailed Sandpiper occurs in Vancouver. It is yellow legged and only a tiny bit smaller than a pectoral. Dave, go find a similar bird with a bright rufous crown and a bright buff breast with less streaking. The post it here so I can drool. It is a drop-dead gorgeous bird. I hope that I get to see one before they put me in the box. And Whiskered Auklet too.

[Dave Leroy]

Consider me on duty Artie. After consulting my Rare Birds of the West Coast Book, there is an average of about 10 juvenile Sharp-tailed Sandpipers a year recorded as seen in Vancouver/Vancouver Island area during fall migration (Sept/Oct). They need to hurry 'cause duck hunting season starts Oct 10 where I saw the Pectoral. Dave

[Arthur Morris]

Go get it!

[Declan Troy]

Indeed, Sharp-tailed is a possibility there and there are a few other yellow legged shorebirds as well but I qualifier likely gave me enough wiggle room. There have been some sharp-taileds moving through here (south-central Alaska; Anchorage, Homer) over the past few weeks so be on the lookout for them. The odds improve further to the west. Artie, This is a bird you might keep an eye out for during your bear trips. Not probably but certainly possible.

Whiskered Auklets take a bit more effort to get to. I used to survey them but haven't been near one for several years. Pretty cool birds.

[Arthur Morris]

Thanks Declan. The only shorebird we see in the fall on the bear boat are Wandering Tattlers. I really would like to see a fresh juvie before I croak....

[Arthur Morris]

ps: Maybe I will find one at Jamaica Bay this week; I am going to visit my Mom.

[Declan Troy]

Sharp-tails can be reasonably common in western Alaska although the best places I've been to are rather inaccessible. I should think some easy to reach places like Nome would offer good potential. Or keep it as another excuse to plan a trip Down Under then you can get adults too. The adults are pretty "sharp" looking sandpipers too.

[Dave Brown]

salivating at the thought of STSA..ahhhh.There are two shorebirds I really want to find in Newfoundland,Sharptailed sandpiper and Rufous-necked Stint.No records for either yet,but I'm only young ;)I've had great success at findin Ringed Plovers though,a cryptic and under reported species. That is a beautiful bird,looks a lot like a Semipalmated Plover,but the subtle differences make them a very different bird. In fact I found one only about 10 days ago- 9th for Newfoundlandand my 5th in three years. If anyone is interested I've posted a link to a paper I coauthored documenting their occurence in Newfoundland in 2006- it also includes lots of useful ID information.

Maybe you can find on of those next week too Artie :)

http://elibrary.unm.edu/sora/NAB/v06...170-p00173.pdf

Dave Brown

[Declan Troy]

Careful with those abbreviations Dave, most from North America would default STSA to represent Stilt Sandpiper (another fine bird). I saw your Ringed Plover on Surfbirds, excellent find.

[Arthur Morris]

Good point Declan.

JFTRBs (just for the record books):

Sharp-tailed Sandpiper SPTS

Stilt Sandpiper STSA

Spotted Sandpiper SPSA

Maybe I can find a SBSA this afternoon at JBWR! That would make my day.

I found New York State's first Red-necked Stint RNST there in 1985, two years after the first Little Stint LIST.

[Dave Brown]

Hi,

Thanks for the correction Declan. Stilt-sand is nice too,I've yet to see one this year.

Dave Brown

[Declan Troy]

There are many variations on alpha codes for birds. When one bands a sharp-tailed sandpiper the alpha code used in North American is SHAS. Of course SHAS, SPTS, or STSA would not ring a bell for the numerous photographers/birders/biologists that know this species as uzura shigi. One of the great things about this forum is the tremendous international presence so I would think it best to avoid using local species abbreviations.

And to keep this loosely based on the original topic (you still with us Dave!), Stilt Sandpiper is another calidrid sandpiper with yellowish legs that could be seen around Vancouver. Not likely to be confused with a pectoral though.

[Arthur Morris]

Hi Declan,

Surely there are different systems in use. The one I quoted from are from this list:

English and Scientific Alpha Codes for North American Birds through the 50th AOU Supplement (2009).

Folks can find the whole list here: http://www.birdpop.org/AlphaCodes.htm

I used a bunch of the four letter codes when I was doing the shorebird survey at JBWR. Here are the ones that I remember:

SEPL
SESA
MAGO
HUGO

The rest I sort of made up