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What sandpiper ? (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Jean FRANCOIS
- Start date
Valéry Schollaert
Respect animals, don't eat or wear their body or s
I agree on Semipalmated. Very nice to see the "semipalms" !
Andy Adcock
Worst person on Birdforum
Palmations.
rollingthunder
Well-known member
Based on my vast experience of 1 individual as soon as i saw the feet i thought gotta be a Semi-P
Laurie -
Laurie -
Jean FRANCOIS
Well-known member
An information that I have voluntarily kept so far : the photographer claims that the bird was screaming like a Western :smoke:
Jean
Microtus
Maryland USA (he/him)
That is interesting!
rollingthunder
Well-known member
This is why these vernacular names can be misleading - Florida is nowhere near the West.....
Laurie -
Laurie -
Nutcracker
Stop Brexit!
It's a long way west of Europe 3
- but more to the point, Western's breeding range is further west than Semi-p's (though with much overlap). Western is the shorter-distance migrant, wintering mainly on USA lower 48 coasts; Semi-ps almost all go to the southern Caribbean, and Central and northern South America. But that could easily change with the current global overheating: Florida isn't very far north of the current wintering range.As to which this is; it's a very tricky pair in adult winter plumage. Bill length overlaps, this clearly isn't a 'long-billed' Western, but a 'short-billed' Western can't be ruled out on this alone. Bill curvature may be more useful, and this bird's quite straight bill favours Semi-p. The feathering hardly differs between the two, but Western is described as being a 'slightly cleaner, colder grey' - so this bird's warmer, browner tones would again tend to point more to Semi-p. Hard to be sure though as that may just be a camera light balance effect. Calls are probably the best way to tell them apart; without a recording I can't say, but I'd give a good deal of weight to the photographer's comment.
So, overall: with points in favour of both species, I think this one has to go down as indeterminable between them without further evidence. Sorry!
Jean FRANCOIS
Well-known member
Key West, february 2016
Microtus
Maryland USA (he/him)
There is an eBird record of a Semipalmated Sandpiper photographed in February 2016 at Long Key State Park campground, which is about 65 miles to the east of Key West.
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S27837252
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S27837252
Valéry Schollaert
Respect animals, don't eat or wear their body or s
tom baxter
Well-known member
1 western sandpipers have palmations as well so that cannot be used as a distinguisher
2 the bill shape is strongly suggestive of semipalmated. Length wise it’s on the long side of the spectrum but the bluntness of the tip and the straightness are very typical of semipalmated and this bill profile is virtually absent in westerns. Anomalies are frequent with peeps though.
3 leg position and head shape are both very suspect characteristic to assess from one photo but appear to both favor western. (Very suspect from one photo)
Any other photos?
Based upon the bill alone if you were to call this a semi you’d be right 99% of the time. Also semis are more common in Florida in January than ebird realizes, though still very rare. I wouldn’t conclusively cast my vote without other photos still.
2 the bill shape is strongly suggestive of semipalmated. Length wise it’s on the long side of the spectrum but the bluntness of the tip and the straightness are very typical of semipalmated and this bill profile is virtually absent in westerns. Anomalies are frequent with peeps though.
3 leg position and head shape are both very suspect characteristic to assess from one photo but appear to both favor western. (Very suspect from one photo)
Any other photos?
Based upon the bill alone if you were to call this a semi you’d be right 99% of the time. Also semis are more common in Florida in January than ebird realizes, though still very rare. I wouldn’t conclusively cast my vote without other photos still.
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Jean FRANCOIS
Well-known member
That's where the problem is.
The foot of mauri is also semi-palmated.
Nutcracker
Stop Brexit!
And presumably Key West at the extreme SW tip of Florida, is perhaps more likely to have them than other places in the state?
Jean FRANCOIS
Well-known member
No other photo, unfortunately.
lou salomon
the birdonist
so the answer is: it IS possible that it is a western sand but, as tom baxter explained, not sure. bill is indeed pretty semipalm-like but would be quite long for that sp; and i also had the same impression about a front-heavy bird (which is, as said, difficult to assess from one single image). so, i'd not put a certain name on it except if the observer is pretty firm in his knowledge about the vocalizations of the two sp.
Jean FRANCOIS
Well-known member
Thank you for all these constructive, if not definitive, opinions.
Jean
Jean
