The Terek Sandpiper is a small gray shorebird with a long, upturned bill and short yellow-orange legs. It breeds across northern Eurasia and winters on tropical coasts of East Africa, southern Asia, and Australia. In the US it is a rare visitor found only in Alaska, where a few birds reach the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands in most years.
Appearance
- Appearance
- About 9–10 in (22–25 cm) long. Gray above with a whitish belly, a black bill with a yellowish base, and yellow legs. The long, upturned bill is the giveaway.
- Voice
- A high, whistled call.
Look-alikes
Bar-tailed GodwitLimosa lapponica
The godwit is much larger, 15–16 in (37–41 cm), with blue-gray legs and a pink-based bill. The Terek Sandpiper is small with yellow legs.
Why they get mixed upBoth have a long, slightly upturned bill, and both occur in western Alaska.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- mudflats
- estuaries
- beaches
- Range
- Breeds from Finland across northern Siberia; winters on tropical coasts of East Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Australia. In North America it is a regular but scarce nonbreeding visitor to western Alaska, and a very rare stray elsewhere.
- Seasonal presence
- Long-distance migrant; in the US, a rare visitor to Alaska only.
- Preferred conditions
- Prefers soft, muddy shores; in the breeding season uses wet lowlands and willow scrub in northern forest and tundra.
Behavior
- Diet
- Insects, small crabs, and other small animals that move across the mud.
- Activity
- Runs fast across the mud chasing moving prey, then often dashes to the water's edge to rinse its catch before eating it.
Life cycle
- Nest
- A shallow scrape on the ground, lined with plant material, near water.
- Clutch size
- 3–4 eggs
Name and classification
- About the name
- Named for the Terek River, which flows into the Caspian Sea, where it was first observed. It was once placed in Tringa (as Tringa cinerea or Tringa terek) and is now the only member of the genus Xenus, from the Greek for "stranger."
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- LCLeast ConcernLow risk of extinction
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