Limnodromus griseus
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The short-billed dowitcher (Limnodromus griseus), like its congener, the long-billed dowitcher, is a medium-sized, stocky, long-billed shorebird in the family Scolopacidae. It is an inhabitant of North America, Central America, the Caribbean, and northern South America. It is strongly migratory; it completely vacates its breeding areas during the snow-bound months. This species favors a variety of habitats, including tundra in the north to ponds and mudflats in the south. It feeds on invertebrates often by rapidly probing its bill into mud in a sewing machine fashion. It and the very similar long-billed dowitcher were considered one species until 1950. Field identification of the two American Limnodromus remains difficult today. Distinguishing wintering or juvenile short-billed dowitchers from the long-billed species is very difficult and, even given examination of their subtlety different body shapes, cannot always be isolated to a particular species. They differ most substantially in vocalizations. The names of American dowitchers are misleading, as there is much overlap in their bill lengths. Only a small percentage can be identified by this character alone.
The short... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Panama City | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 2 | Havana | 🇨🇺 Cuba | |
| 3 | Anchorage | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | New York City | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Boston | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Miami | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Chicago | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | National Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Short-billed Dowitcher sighting in Panama City on a given day, based on 1,378 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 42nd most-seen of the 363 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Short-billed Dowitcher in Panama City on a given day, against about 20% in February–April, June–August and October–December, the lowest months. That is one of Panama City's wettest months, with about 250 mm of rain against 10 mm in February.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Short-billed Dowitcher sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 20 cities where we can rate Short-billed Dowitcher sightings, Panama City has the highest daily chance: about 20%. Next come Havana (Cuba, about 10%) and Anchorage (United States, about 10%).
Same family: Scolopacidae
The closest relatives of the Short-billed Dowitcher that you can see in Panama City (family Scolopacidae, Sandpipers and Allies) are Spotted Sandpiper (about 30%), Whimbrel (about 30%) and Willet (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Short-billed Dowitcher is recorded against all the birds logged in Panama City (1,378 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
