Spoon sandpiper
| Spoon sandpiper | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sandpiper ( Calidris pygmeus ) |
||||||||
| Systematics | ||||||||
|
||||||||
| Scientific name | ||||||||
| Calidris pygmeus | ||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
The sandpiper ( Calidris pygmeus , Syn . : Eurynorhynchus pygmaea ) is a small wader . It is named after the noticeably widened beak at the front end, which cannot be found in any other wading bird and only in a few other birds. The long-distance migrant occurs in East Asia and East Russia on the Pacific coast.
description
The spoon sandpiper reaches a body length of 14 to 16 centimeters. The wingspan is 36 to 40 centimeters. The weight varies between 20 and 35 grams.
The head, neck and chest of the adult birds are reddish brown with dark brown stripes. The underside is blackish with light brown and light cinnamon colored edges. In the plain dress the reddish color is missing, the feathers of the pale brown-gray upper side are lined with whitish up to the wing covers. The underside is white.
Distribution and way of life
Spoon-billed sandpipers breed on the tundra on the ground, on the train, and in winter they rest on mud flats along the ocean. The spoon-shaped beak is not used to be, but to peck larger insects from the surface of the water and to poke in sandy-muddy substrate.
The breeding areas of the spoon-potted sandpiper are on the Chukchi Peninsula and south along the Isthmus of Kamchatka . The spoon sandpiper breeds here exclusively in spits with sparse dwarf tundra, which border on river mouths with tidal flats. With one exception, all breeding sites are no more than five kilometers from the sea. Presumably, its breeding area was also limited to this region in the past and the spoonbill sandpiper was never particularly common.
Sandpipers migrate along the Pacific coast of Japan , North Korea , South Korea and China to the wintering areas in South and Southeast Asia. There is evidence of winter sandpipers from India , Bangladesh , Sri Lanka , Myanmar , Thailand , Vietnam , the Philippines , the Malay Peninsula and Singapore .
The spoonbill sandpiper is on the verge of extinction; its population is falling sharply. If there were still 120 to 220 breeding pairs in 2009, it is currently (as of 2012) assumed that no more than 100 breeding pairs are alive. Above all, loss of habitat along the migration route is a major problem. For example, one of the most important areas along the migration route near Saemangeum in South Korea has already been partially diked, and further areas are to follow.
Important areas in which sandpipers hibernate or rest on the train are Yangcheng in China, the Mai-Po plains in Hong Kong, the Red River Delta (Xuan-Thuy Nature Reserve) in Vietnam, the inner Gulf of Thailand and Point Calimere and the Chilka Lake in India.
supporting documents
literature
- Dominic Couzens : Rare Birds - Survivors, Evolution Losers and the Lost. Haupt Verlag, Bern 2011, ISBN 978-3-258-07629-4 .
- Zöckler, C., Syroechkovskiy, EE & Philip W. Atkinson (2010): Rapid and continued population decline in the Spoon-billed Sandpiper Eurynorhynchus pygmeus indicates imminent extinction unless conservation action is taken. In: Bird Conservation International 20 (2): 95-111. Abstract
- Zöckler, C. (2007): An international species protection plan for the sandpiper ( Calidris pygmeus ). In: Ber. Bird protection. 44: 121-130. Download the article as a PDF file (PDF; 780 kB)
- Richard Sale: A Complete Guide to Arctic Wildlife , published by Christopher Helm, London 2006, ISBN 0-7136-7039-8
Web links
- Videos, photos and sound recordings of Calidris pygmeus in the Internet Bird Collection
- HD video on YouTube
- Calidris pygmaea onthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species .
- Description of the species at Bird Life
- Calidris pygmeus "Priceless or Worthless?" IUCN Red List