Short-billed dowitcher

Short-billed dowitcher
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Charadriiformes
Family: Scolopacidae
Genus: Limnodromus
Species:
L. griseus
Binomial name
Limnodromus griseus
(Gmelin, JF, 1789)
  Breeding
  Migration
  Nonbreeding
Synonyms
  • Scolopax grisea Gmelin, 1789
In breeding plumage
Adult in foreground, red knot in background

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.[2] It is strongly migratory; it completely vacates in breeding areas during the snow-bound months.[3] 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.[4] It and the very similar long-billed dowitcher were considered one species until 1950.[5] 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 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.[4][5] Only a small percentage can be identified by this character alone.[5]

  1. ^ BirdLife International (2016). "Limnodromus griseus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T22693344A93396788. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22693344A93396788.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference AOU was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Sibley was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Paulson was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Kaufmann was invoked but never defined (see the help page).