Spotted Sandpiper

Actitis macularius

Introduction

The Nearctic counterpart of Common Sandpiper (which it closely resembles) is a scarce, but annual, visitor to Britain & Ireland. Remarkably, a pair of Spotted Sandpipers nested on Skye in 1975, though failed at the egg stage.

Key Stats

Status

Rare

Weight

45g

Seasonality

<1%

BTO Records

3.6k records

Population and distribution stats for:

No data

No current data

No current data

No data

No current data

% expansion

Status and Trends

Population size, trends and patterns of distribution based on BTO and partnership surveys and atlasses with data collected by BTO volunteers.

Conservation Status

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This species can be found on the following statutory and conservation listings and schedules.

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (global)

Least Concern

Schedule 1 Licence required (to disturb)*

Birds Directive Annex 1

* A guide only. Check details with the original legislation, especially those marked with an asterisk. See About Birdfacts for more information.

Population Size

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BOU Category

Source

First Record*

Cornwall, 1924

* First documented occurrence. Most species undoubtedly occurred before this. See About Birdfacts for more information.

Population Change

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Population trends of this scarce species are not routinely monitored.

Distribution

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This species is a rare vagrant and was recorded during Bird Atlas 2007–11 as shown on the map.

Occupied 10-km squares in UK

These figures come from Bird Atlas 2007 and indicate how widespread a species is.

No. occupied in winter

% occupied in winter

0.3%

Bird Atlas distribution maps show where bird species breed or winter in Britain and Ireland. For breeding maps, larger dots indicate higher certainty the species bred in that area.

Winter Distribution for Spotted Sandpiper

Click the map to enlarge,
or view it on Bird Atlas Mapstore.

Breeding Distribution for Spotted Sandpiper

Click the map to enlarge,
or view it on Bird Atlas Mapstore.

To view and download up-to-date distribution information aggregated from across BTO and partnership surveys and schemes, see our data holdings on the NBN Atlas.

Distribution Change

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This vagrant is too rarely reported to map distribution change.

Seasonality

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Spotted Sandpiper is a rare vagrant that can be encountered at any time of the year.

Weekly pattern of occurrence

The graph shows when the species is present in the UK, with taller bars indicating a higher likelihood of encountering the species in appropriate regions and habitats.

Phenology graph — Weekly occurrence patterns (shaded cells and reporting rates (vertical bars) based on BirdTrack data. Reporting rates give the likelihood of encountering the species each week.

Movement

Information about Spotted Sandpiper movements and migration based on online bird portals (e.g. BirdTrack), Ringing schemes and tracking studies.

Britain & Ireland movement

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View a summary of recoveries in the Online Ringing Report

European movements

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EuroBirdPortal uses birdwatcher's records, such as those logged in BirdTrack to map the flows of birds as they arrive and depart Europe. See maps for this species here.

Biology

Lifecycle and body size information for Spotted Sandpiper, including statistics on nesting, eggs and lifespan based on BTO ringing and nest recording data.

Survival and Longevity

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Survival is shown as the proportion of birds surviving from one year to the next and is derived from bird ringing data. It can also be used to estimate how long birds typically live.

Classification, names and codes

Taxonomy, names and species codes for Spotted Sandpiper

Classification and Codes

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Order: Charadriiformes
Family: Scolopacidae
Scientific name: Actitis macularius
Authority: Linnaeus, 1766

BTO 2-letter code: PQ
BTO 5-letter code: SPOSA
Euring code number: 5570

Alternate species names

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Catalan: xivitona maculada
Czech: pisík americký
Danish: Plettet Mudderklire
Dutch: Amerikaanse Oeverloper
Estonian: ameerika vihitaja e. ameerika jõgitilder
Finnish: amerikansipi
French: Chevalier grivelé
Gaelic: Luatharan-breac

German: Drosseluferläufer
Hungarian: pettyes billegetocankó
Icelandic: Dílastelkur
Irish: Gobadán Breac
Italian: Piro piro macchiato
Latvian: punktaina tilbite
Lithuanian: demetasis krantinis tilvikas
Norwegian: Flekksnipe

Polish: brodziec plamisty
Portuguese: maçarico-pintado
Slovak: kalužiacik škvrnitý
Slovenian: ameriški mali martinec
Spanish: Andarríos maculado
Swedish: fläckdrillsnäppa
Welsh: Pibydd Brych

More Evidence

More evidence from Conservation Evidence.com

Partners

Birdfacts is based on data collected by volunteers participating in surveys that are organised and funded by BTO, RSPB, Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, JNCC and other partners.

BTO

Esmée Fairbairn Foundation

JNCC

RSPB

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