Semipalmated Sandpiper (Calidris pusilla)

The stints or peeps are small shorebirds that are often observed near water feeding on small crustaceans in the mud. Of around 135 species of shorebirds known, 90% are plovers and sandpipers. The stints share similar appearances -- beaks that are fit to dig and point out the preys in the mud, and brownish upperparts and white underparts. It sometimes is difficult to distinguish from each other especially in winter plumage.

The semipalmated sandpiper has dark legs and a fairly long beak. Its feet are semi-palmated and half webbed.

Winthrop, MA
2010-09-05

These individuals are found on the beach among laughing gulls and other gulls. The plovers (Charandrius sp.) have shorter thick beaks than sandpipers (Calidris sp.).