May 22
Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius) on the left. Family Scolopacidae, order Charadriiformes.
Dunlin (Calidris alpina) on the right. Family Scolopacidae, order Charadriiformes.
Brazoria NWR, Texas, USA. April 2026.
seen from Türkiye
seen from Russia
seen from China
seen from Netherlands
seen from Netherlands
seen from China
seen from Netherlands
seen from Greece
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Australia
seen from United States
seen from Thailand
seen from China
seen from India
seen from Türkiye
seen from Thailand
seen from United States
seen from Maldives
seen from Japan
Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius) on the left. Family Scolopacidae, order Charadriiformes.
Dunlin (Calidris alpina) on the right. Family Scolopacidae, order Charadriiformes.
Brazoria NWR, Texas, USA. April 2026.
colleague in shared field house got the message...
Sometimes when I’m birdwatching
Dunlin
Lakefront Park, Seneca Lake
Geneva, NY
[ irish ruins ] by DERYK1968
Dunlin (Calidris alpina). Family Scolopacidae, order Charadriiformes.
A gorgeous lifer for me! I didn't expect these birds to be SO red.
Brazoria NWR, Texas, USA. April 2026.
Bird guides have pictures of "breeding plumage"--but how long does breeding plumage last? Does a bird have it for only 3 weeks? for half the year? How do I know when to look for breeding plumage, and when to look for nonbreeding plumage?
It’s species-specific, and I believe to a lesser extent can also be population/location/individual-specific within a species. But in general the cycles are a period of months.
A good field guide (I’m a Sibley fan) will give you an idea by captioning the illustrations with a range of months. Is there a particular species you’re wondering about? I can give more details if so.
Some examples:
Dunlin
Lakefront Park, Seneca Lake
Geneva, NY