Luís Vieira
Active member
Hi everyone,
I photographed today (January 26th 2025) a sandpiper on the west coast of Portugal near Lisbon. The bird was resting on some rocks by the sea along with 2 sanderlings Calidris alba. It caught my attention because it had a grey-brown back, not as grey as the C. alba (in the photos the difference is not so clear, but in the field the difference was noticeable). The feathers on the back do not have a clear white edge as in C. alba and the small dark area on the side (edge of the wing) is also not visible. The bill appears to be shorter than in C. alba. The bird also appears to have a more compact and plump overall appearance than sanderlings.
I would like to know your opinion on the identification of this bird. I attach 6 photos, in which the bird I refer to is behind the 2 C. alba. In the last photo, only the 2 C. alba are present.
Thank you very much in advance.
I photographed today (January 26th 2025) a sandpiper on the west coast of Portugal near Lisbon. The bird was resting on some rocks by the sea along with 2 sanderlings Calidris alba. It caught my attention because it had a grey-brown back, not as grey as the C. alba (in the photos the difference is not so clear, but in the field the difference was noticeable). The feathers on the back do not have a clear white edge as in C. alba and the small dark area on the side (edge of the wing) is also not visible. The bill appears to be shorter than in C. alba. The bird also appears to have a more compact and plump overall appearance than sanderlings.
I would like to know your opinion on the identification of this bird. I attach 6 photos, in which the bird I refer to is behind the 2 C. alba. In the last photo, only the 2 C. alba are present.
Thank you very much in advance.
