Sanderling
Sanderling | ||||||||
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![]() Sanderling ( Calidris alba ) |
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Systematics | ||||||||
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Scientific name | ||||||||
Calidris alba | ||||||||
( Pallas , 1764) |
The Sanderling ( Calidris alba ) is a small wader belonging to the sandpiper genus. In the Wadden Sea of the Netherlands and Germany, it appears in large swarms on the North Sea coast , especially in the winter half-year , and much less often in the interior. It can also be observed all year round, at least in small numbers. In contrast, only a small proportion of the Sanderlings overwinter on the Baltic Sea. During the migration period, a few hundred birds at most can be observed there.
description
![Sanderling (plain dress) while foraging on the rinsing edge](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Fressender_Sanderling_auf_Spiekeroog_-_Nationalpark_nieders%C3%A4chsisches_Wattenmeer.jpg/220px-Fressender_Sanderling_auf_Spiekeroog_-_Nationalpark_nieders%C3%A4chsisches_Wattenmeer.jpg)
Adult birds
The Sanderling reaches a body length of 20 to 22 centimeters. The wingspan is 40 to 45 centimeters. The weight varies from 45 to 65 grams.
It attracts attention in winter because of its relatively light plumage. The top is light gray to gray, the bottom white. The dark bow of the wing is striking, the wings of the hand are also dark. The beak and legs are black, the feet are three-toed because they lack the rear toe. In flight, the Sanderling appears silver-gray and shows a clear white wing stripe.
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/df/Calidris_alba_%28breeding_plumage%29.jpg/220px-Calidris_alba_%28breeding_plumage%29.jpg)
In breeding plumage the Sanderling is the dwarf beach runners not dissimilar. The upper side has a brownish piebald and becomes increasingly rusty brown towards summer, especially in the American subspecies. In contrast to the winter dress, the upper side is colored over the entire head and down to the front chest.
In winter, the Sanderling can often be found on flat sandy beaches. Along the rinsing seams , he runs after the waves flowing away in a typical jog and picks up the crustaceans and worms that have rolled up. Sanderlings have the ability to skilfully avoid waves so that they do not have to be blown up.
Fledglings
The downy boys are white on the underside of the body and tinted light beige on the throat. The top of the body is ocher in color with larger black spots and fine white spots. The downy boys have a black central stripe on their foreheads. The sides of the head have narrow black rein, eye and bar stripes. There are some dark markings on the ear covers. The iris is brown. The beak is gray with a black tip. The legs and toes are black to bluish black or greenish gray. The dress of the young birds shows a similarity to the winter dress, but is piebald on the top, with a clear scale pattern.
voice
The Sanderling often calls a short plitt , tjick or tiwick , which it usually emits in a row when it flies up .
distribution and habitat
The sanderling is a breeding bird of the arctic tundra and arctic islands, e.g. B. on Svalbard . The circumpolar species has two subspecies, the Eurasian ( Calidris a. Alba ) and the American ( C. a. Rubida ). The species not only winters in the moderate latitudes, but also migrates long distances - depending on the population to South Africa, South America or Australia.
Reproduction
During the short breeding season, the nesting site is mainly found on dry elevations in the tundra. The nest hollow is covered with a few sparse stalks and lichens. The clutch usually consists of 3–4 olive-colored, brown-speckled eggs. Both parent birds are involved in the incubation of the clutch. Some of the females lay two clutches, one of which is incubated by him and the other by the male. The breeding season is 24 to 27 days. At 17 days the young birds can fledge and at 23 to 24 days they are independent.
In the breeding area, the Sanderling feeds primarily on insects and parts of plants that it finds in the more swampy areas of its habitat.
The highest age of sanderlings that has been found to have been ringed is 18 years and six months for an individual ringed on the British Isles and 16 years and six months for an animal ringed on Heligoland .
food
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/Sanderling_%28calidris_alba%29_frisst_Schwertmuschel_%28Ensis_directus%29_-_Spiekeroog%2C_Nationalpark_Nieders%C3%A4chsisches_Wattenmeer.jpg/220px-Sanderling_%28calidris_alba%29_frisst_Schwertmuschel_%28Ensis_directus%29_-_Spiekeroog%2C_Nationalpark_Nieders%C3%A4chsisches_Wattenmeer.jpg)
Sanderlings usually look for their food along the rinsing lines on the beach, sometimes in the mudflats. They feed mainly on crustaceans, worms, insects and fly larvae, but sometimes also on vegetable foods such as seeds. They also eat larger dead animals such as mussels and crabs, especially during migration.
Duration
The European breeding population at the beginning of the 21st century was between 25,000 and 50,000 breeding pairs. These bred mostly on Greenland and a few specimens on Svalbard. The East Atlantic migratory route of this species leads across Central Europe. It is used by birds whose breeding areas are in northeastern Canada and northeastern Greenland and on Svalbard to the west of Taimyr. About 123,000 Sanderlings use this train route.
supporting documents
literature
- Hans-Günther Bauer, Einhard Bezzel and Wolfgang Fiedler (eds.): The compendium of birds in Central Europe: Everything about biology, endangerment and protection. Volume 1: Nonpasseriformes - non-sparrow birds. Aula-Verlag Wiebelsheim, Wiesbaden 2005, ISBN 3-89104-647-2 .
- Collin Harrison and Peter Castell: Fledglings, Eggs and Nests of Birds in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Aula Verlag, Wiebelsheim 2004, ISBN 3-89104-685-5
- Richard Sale: A Complete Guide to Arctic Wildlife , published by Christopher Helm, London 2006, ISBN 0-7136-7039-8
Web links
- Plumage
- Images (North America)
- Designation drawing
- Wildlife photos of the Sanderling
- Calidris alba in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2008. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2008. Accessed on December 29 of 2008.
- Videos, photos and sound recordings of Calidris alba in the Internet Bird Collection
- Sanderling's feathers
Individual evidence
- ↑ Sale, p. 192
- ↑ Harrison et al., P. 137
- ^ Harrison et al., Pp: 137
- ↑ Hüppop. K. & O. Hüppop: Atlas for bird ringing on Helgoland, Vogelwarte 47 (2009), page 214
- ↑ Codrops: Sanderling (Calidris alba). Retrieved on July 6, 2020 (German).
- ↑ Sanderlings: With quick triple steps along the water's edge. Retrieved on July 6, 2020 (German).
- ↑ Bauer et al., P. 527