Western Sandpiper

Status Rare transient. At least some of a large flock of small sandpipers seen by Christel and Norman Bell on Sable Island on 23 December 1963 were believed to be this species. The first fully documented observation was by Davis Finch, who picked out two, possibly three, among Semipalmated Sandpipers on Brier Island on 4 September 1969. On 9 September 1970 Jean Burton collected a juvenile on Sable Island (Ouellet et al. 1973). Since then, fall migrants have been reported in most years, at least six documented by photographs. Most have occurred between mid-August and late September, with a few in October and one sighting of four at Conrad Beach, Halifax County, on 16 November 1980. A well-described early migrant was at John Lusby Marsh, Cumberland County, on 16 July 1980 (S.I. Tingley).

Remarks The recent change in status is probably more a tribute to advances in techniques of field identification than to any change in the range of the species. However, it is possible that some have been misidentified. On average the bill of the Western Sandpiper is heavier, thicker at the base and more drooping than that of the Semipalmated Sandpiper. There is, however, considerable overlapping of bill size in the two species, and this is particularly true of birds seen in the northeast. Juvenile Western Sandpipers typically show more chestnut in the scapulars and mantle but, again, there is considerable variation. In short, it is not always possible to distinguish fall juveniles; winter adults present an even more difficult problem.

A common call of the Western Sandpiper, a thin cheet, is quite different from the rather harsh chir-rup of the Semipalmated Sandpiper. Western Sandpipers breed in northeastern Siberia and Alaska, and most migrate down the west coast. However, there is a regular flight to the east coast in autumn, and the bird is much more regular in the southeastern United States during winter than is the Semipalmated Sandpiper.