Sandpipers

Least Sandpiper

Wiesenstrandläufer

Calidris minutilla

Sandpipers4 photosFirst seen: 11 July 2026

The Least Sandpiper is the smallest shorebird in the world and has distinctive yellow-green legs. It has a short, slightly downcurved bill and brown upperparts. The species feeds on small invertebrates at the upper, drier edges of mudflats and marshes. It breeds in northern bogs and tundra and migrates to the southern United States and Latin America. Females often leave before the young can fly, while males complete parental care.

ID tip: Check the legs: yellowish-green legs on a tiny, brown, hunched sandpiper mean Least Sandpiper. Every similar species here has black legs.

First seen: 11 July 2026 · Oyhut Wildlife Recreation Area · 4 photos in the collection.

Places in my records

Locations where this species is supported by a dated first record, an unambiguous single-place outing or a reviewed assignment.

Oyhut Wildlife Recreation Area11 July 2026

Family: Sandpipers (Scolopacidae)
Length: 13–15 cm
Wingspan: 27–28 cm
Regional status: Migrant (Pacific Northwest, USA)
Conservation: Near Threatened NTIUCN Red List · retrieved 27 August 2026
Habitat: Muddy pond edges, saltmarsh, upper tideflats
Diet: Small crustaceans, insects, snails, worms

Built from verified occurrence records, not drawn by hand. Core range = the countries holding 99% of all records; the rest are scattered or vagrant records. Record counts track where people watch birds as much as where the birds are, so the map shows presence, not abundance. Data: GBIF (CC BY 4.0). Basemap: Natural Earth.

Least Sandpiper

Places in my records

Selected photographs