Species

Upland sandpiper

Bartramia longicauda

A grassland sandpiper with a pigeon-like head that perches on fence posts, passing through Georgia in migration.

Photo Johnath (opens in a new tab) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 (opens in a new tab)

Migration

At a glance

Size: About 28 to 32 cm long
Weight: About 100 to 230 g
Habitat: Short-grass fields, pastures, turf farms and airports
Diet: Insects, especially grasshoppers and beetles
In Georgia: An uncommon migrant, mostly in spring and late summer
Voice: A long, rising and falling wolf-whistle
Rabies vector: No

Identification

Key marks: Small head on a long, thin neck; large dark eye; short yellow bill; long tail; buff and brown streaked body
Told apart from: Buff-breasted sandpiper, which has a plain buff face and breast and a short neck
Where to look: Turf farms and short-grass fields, and fence posts beside them

Behaviour

Upland sandpipers live in grasslands, not on shores. They often land on posts and hold their wings upright for a moment before folding them.

Why they matter

Upland sandpipers were once shot in huge numbers and lost much of their prairie breeding habitat to farming. They migrate between North American grasslands and the pampas of South America, and they depend on grasslands at both ends.

Reproduction and lifecycle

Nest — A grass-lined scrape hidden in tall grass
Eggs — Usually four
Incubation — About 21 to 27 days
Chicks — Leave the nest within a day
Flight — At about 30 days
Lifespan — Several years

Living around people

Airports and turf farms are among their stopovers; mowing and pesticides affect them.

Misconceptions

Sandpipers only live on beaches. The upland sandpiper lives in grasslands.

Related species

Seasonal activity

When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.

Breeding and active nests by month for this species
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Breeding	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Active nests	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Notes	In South America	In South America	Migrants passing	Migrants passing	Nesting in northern grasslands	Nesting	Adults begin moving south	Migrants passing	Migrants passing	In South America	In South America	In South America

Where it lives

Recorded in 47 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.

Canada

Mexico

If you found one

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