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Rock Sandpiper

Rock Sandpiper

Calidris ptilocnemis

Migration Flyway

Showing primary migration corridor(s) for this species

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View on eBirdWikipedia

About the Rock Sandpiper

The rock sandpiper (Calidris ptilocnemis) is a small shorebird in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae. This is a hardy sandpiper that breeds in the arctic and subarctic regions of Alaska and the Chukotka and Kamchatka Peninsulas. It is closely related to the purple sandpiper that breeds in arctic regions of northeast Canada and the northwest Palearctic, and in the past was often considered conspecific with it.

Source: Wikipedia

Classification

Scientific name
Calidris ptilocnemis
Family
Sandpipers and Allies
Order
Charadriiformes

Similar species

Other members of the sandpipers and allies family recorded in North America — a useful place to start if you are not certain of your identification.

  • American Woodcock Scolopax minor
  • Baird's Sandpiper Calidris bairdii
  • Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica
  • Black Turnstone Arenaria melanocephala
  • Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa
  • Bristle-thighed Curlew Numenius tahitiensis
  • Broad-billed Sandpiper Calidris falcinellus
  • Buff-breasted Sandpiper Calidris subruficollis
  • Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia
  • Common Redshank Tringa totanus
  • Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos
  • Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago

Know when the Rock Sandpiper turns up near you

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Gear for spotting Rock Sandpiper

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Spotting Scopes for Distance Birding

Essential for shorebirds, raptors, and anything too far for binoculars. Our tested picks.

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