Calidris acuminata
Silhouette: Edwin Price · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The sharp-tailed sandpiper (Calidris acuminata) is a small-medium migratory wader or shorebird, found mostly in Siberia during the summer breeding period (June to August) and Australia for wintering (September to March).
Within the genus Calidris the sharp-tailed sandpiper is most closely related to the broad-billed sandpiper (Calidris falcinellus). The genus name calidris comes from the Ancient Greek kalidris or skalidris, a term used by Aristotle for some grey-coloured waterside birds. The specific acuminata is from Latin acuminatus, 'sharp, pointed'.
A small-medium wader, the portly sandpiper has a pot belly, flat back and somewhat drawn-out rear end. It has a mottled chestnut-brown upper body with sharp-looking feathers with a dark centre, a chestnut cap on its head and a brown stripe through each eye. Its bill is dark grey to black and straight, and its legs are olive- to yellow-coloured. The underparts are white or paler in colour, with the mottling similar to that on the breast and sides of the belly. The plumage is more vivid during the breeding season and duller in its winter plumage. The juveniles are brighter in colour in autumn and early... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rottnest Island | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Cape Range | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Ningaloo Marine Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Kakadu National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Wilsons Promontory National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Bali Barat National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Quanzhou | 🇨🇳 China | |
| 2 | Davao City | 🇵🇭 Philippines | |
| 3 | Seattle | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Naha | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 5 | San Francisco | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Melbourne | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Brisbane | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Sydney | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Auckland | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 10 | Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte] | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Sharp-tailed Sandpiper sighting in Sydney on a given day, based on 157 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 138th most-seen of the 243 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Sharp-tailed Sandpiper in Sydney on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Sharp-tailed Sandpiper sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
8th of 16
Of the 16 cities where we can rate Sharp-tailed Sandpiper sightings, Sydney ranks 8th at under 5%. The best odds are in Quanzhou (China, about 10%), Davao City (Philippines, under 5%) and Seattle (United States, under 5%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Sharp-tailed Sandpiper is recorded against all the birds logged in Sydney (157 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.
