Spotted Sandpiper

Actitis macularia 
Plover family (Charadriidae)

Medium-sized shorebird, 6 ¼” long. Large dark spots on white underparts. Repeatedly bobs tail while walking. Bill pinkish orange with darker tip. Brownish to olive gray back.

Habitat:
Lakes, ponds, rivers

Nesting:
Nest is a shallow depression lined with a few grasses near water. Eggs are buff with brown spots. Clutch size – 1 to 4 eggs. Young are precocial, covered with down, leave nest shortly after hatching, begin flying 2 to 3 weeks after hatching.

Voice:

In alarm or aggression, gives series of short whistles like “weet weet weet”. 

Name Origin:

Actitis, aktites, Greek for “a dweller on the sea coast”; macula, Latin for “spot” for spots on underparts of the bird

In the Nature Park:
Short-distance migrant, arrives in April. Spotted Sandpipers occasionally occur along the edge of the Quarry Pond. We don’t know if they nest in the Nature Park.

Photos: