Pectoral sandpiper (Calidris melanotos)
The pectoral sandpiper (Calidris melanotos) is a small, migratory wader that breeds in North America and Asia, wintering in South America and Oceania. It eats small invertebrates. Its nest, a hole scraped in the ground and with a thick lining, is deep enough to protect its four eggs from the cool breezes of its breeding grounds.
This bird looks similar to the widely sympatric sharp-tailed sandpiper (“C.” acuminata), which is not a member of the stint clade however. The pectoral sandpiper is a largish calidrid (21 cm (8.3 in) in length, with a wingspan of 46 cm (18 in)) with a grey-brown back, brownest in the summer male, and greyest in winter. The pectoral sandpiper has a grey breast, sharply demarcated at its lower edge, which gives this species its English name; this clear dividing line is particularly conspicuous if the birds are turned towards the observer. The legs are yellowish, and the bill is olive with a darker tip.
The juveniles are more brightly patterned above with rufous colouration and white mantle stripes.
This species differs from the sharp-tailed sandpiper in its breast pattern, weaker supercilium and greyer crown.
| Standard Measurements[ | |
|---|---|
| length | 200–240 mm (8–9.6 in) |
| weight | 73 g (2.6 oz) |
| wingspan | 460 mm (18 in) |
| wing | 136–142.8 mm (5.35–5.62 in) |
| tail | 60.4–63.9 mm (2.38–2.52 in) |
| culmen | 28.7–29.3 mm (1.13–1.15 in) |
| tarsus | 27.8–30 mm (1.09–1.18 in) |
Few observations in the Danube Delta.
photo: Mihai BACIU
