Editing Sanderling

{{Short description|Species of bird}}
{{About|the bird}}
{{Speciesbox
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 11 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2016 |title=''Calidris alba'' |volume=2016 |page=e.T22693369A86614145 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22693369A86614145.en |access-date=11 November 2021}}</ref>
| image = A sanderling (Calidris alba) transitioning from basic to breeding plumage in the Heislerville Wildlife Management Area, New Jersey, USA.png
| image_caption = Nonbreeding - Hesilerville WMA, [[New Jersey]]
| image2 = Sanderling (Calidris alba) breeding plumage.jpg
| image2_caption = Breeding plumage, [[Farmoor Reservoir]], [[Oxfordshire]]
| genus = Calidris
| species = alba
| authority = ([[Peter Simon Pallas|Pallas]], 1764)
| range_map = Calidris alba map.svg
| range_map_caption = Sanderling range.
| synonyms = *''Charadrius calidris'' {{small|Linnaeus,&nbsp;1766}}
*''Crocethia alba'' {{small|(Pallas,&nbsp;1764)}}<ref group=note>{{harvp|Kirwan et al.|2008}} in ''The Birds of Turkey'' spell this alternative genus ''Crocerthia''</ref>
*''Erolia alba'' {{small|(Pallas,&nbsp;1764)}}
}}
[[File:Sanderlings-oiso-kanagawa-japan-2023-10-11.webm|thumb|Sanderlings in [[Kanagawa Prefecture|Kanagawa]], [[Japan]]]]

The '''sanderling''' ('''''Calidris alba''''') is a small [[wader|wading]] bird. The name derives from [[Old English]] ''sand-yrðling'', "sand-ploughman".<ref name=OED>{{Cite OED |Sanderling }}</ref> The genus name is from [[Ancient Greek]] ''kalidris'' or ''skalidris'', a term used by [[Aristotle]] for some grey-coloured waterside birds. The specific, ''alba'', is [[Latin]] for "white".<ref name=job>{{cite book | last= Jobling | first= James A | year= 2010| title= The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names | url= https://archive.org/details/helmdictionarysc00jobl_997 | url-access= limited | publisher=Christopher Helm | location = London | isbn = 978-1-4081-2501-4 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/helmdictionarysc00jobl_997/page/n40 40], 84}}</ref>

It is a circumpolar [[Arctic]] breeder, and is a long-distance [[bird migration|migrant]], wintering south to [[South America]], South [[Europe]], [[Africa]], and [[Australia]]. It is highly gregarious in winter, sometimes forming large flocks on coastal mudflats or sandy beaches.

It is somewhat unlike other [[sandpiper]]s in appearance, which has led to the suggestion that it should be placed into a [[monotypic]] genus ''Crocethia''. A more recent review (Thomas ''et al.'', 2004) indicates, however, that the sanderling is a fairly typical "[[stint]]" or small sandpiper and should be separated from the large knots with its closest relatives in a distinct genus.

This bird is similar in size to a [[dunlin]], but stouter, with a thick bill. It shows a strong white wingbar in flight, and runs along the sandy beaches it prefers with a characteristic "bicycling" action of its legs, stopping frequently to pick small food items. It eats small [[crab]]s and other small [[invertebrate]]s. In spring, birds migrating north from South America consume large numbers of [[horseshoe crab]] eggs in the [[Delaware Bay]] area.

In spring, the birds arrive on the High Arctic breeding grounds (see map), where they lay 3–4 eggs in a ground scrape. On the nesting grounds, these birds mainly eat [[insect]]s and some plant material.

The sanderling was described by the German naturalist [[Peter Simon Pallas]] in 1764 and given the [[binomial name]] ''Trynga alba''.<ref>{{ cite book | last1=Peters | first1=James Lee | author-link=James L. Peters | year=1934 | title=Check-list of Birds of the World. Volume 2 | volume=2 | publisher=Harvard University Press | place=Cambridge, Massachusetts | page=281 (''Crocethia alba'') | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/14483094 }}</ref><ref>{{ cite journal | last=Sherborn | first=C. Davies | year=1905 | title=The new species of birds in Vroeg's catalogue, 1764 | journal=Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections | volume=47 | pages=332–341 [341 No. 320] | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/8812106 }} Includes a transcript of the 1764 text.</ref><ref>{{ cite journal | last1=Rookmaaker  | first1=L.C. | last2=Pieters | first2=F.F.J.M. | year=2000 | title=Birds in the sales catalogue of Adriaan Vroeg (1764) described by Pallas and Vosmaer | journal=Contributions to Zoology | volume=69 | issue=4 | pages=271–277 | doi=10.1163/18759866-06904005 | url=http://www.repository.naturalis.nl/document/571856 | doi-access=free }}</ref>

The sanderling is one of the species to which the ''Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds'' ([[AEWA]]) applies.

==Description==
The sanderling is a small plump sandpiper, {{convert|18|–|20|cm|in|frac=2|abbr=on}} in length. Its weight ranges from {{convert|40|–|100|g|oz|frac=2|abbr=on}}. The winter [[bird]] is very pale, almost white apart from a dark shoulder patch. This is the source of the specific name, ''alba'', which is the Latin for "white". Later in the summer, the face and throat become brick-red. The juvenile bird is spangled black and white, and shows much more contrast than the adult.

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 87%;"
|-
! colspan="2" | Standard Measurements<ref name=BOC /><ref name=Sibley />
|-
| style="padding-right: 1em;padding-left:0.35em;" | [[Bird measurement#Total Body Length|length]] || style="padding-right: 0.5em;padding-left:0.5em;" | {{convert|7.1|-|8.7|in|mm|abbr=on|order=flip}}
|-
| style="padding-right: 1em;padding-left:0.35em;" | [[Bird measurement#Weight|weight]] || style="padding-right: 0.5em;padding-left:0.5em;" | {{convert|60|g|oz|abbr=on}}
|-
| style="padding-right: 1em;padding-left:0.35em;" | [[Bird measurement#Wingspan|wingspan]] || style="padding-right: 0.5em;padding-left:0.5em;" | {{convert|17|in|mm|abbr=on|order=flip}}
|-
| style="padding-right: 1em;padding-left:0.35em;" | [[Bird measurement#Wing|wing]] || style="padding-right: 0.5em;padding-left:0.5em;" | {{convert|114.5|-|121.6|mm|in|abbr=on}}
|-
| style="padding-right: 1em;padding-left:0.35em;" | [[Bird measurement#Tail|tail]] || style="padding-right: 0.5em;padding-left:0.5em;" | {{convert|47.3|-|53|mm|in|abbr=on}}
|-
| style="padding-right: 1em;padding-left:0.35em;" | [[Bird measurement#Culmen|culmen]] || style="padding-right: 0.5em;padding-left:0.5em;" | {{convert|22.5|-|26.6|mm|in|abbr=on}}
|-
| style="padding-right: 1em;padding-left:0.35em;" | [[Bird measurement#Tarsus|tarsus]] || style="padding-right: 0.5em;padding-left:0.5em;" | {{convert|23.5|-|25.8|mm|in|abbr=on}}
|}

If its size is misjudged, a sanderling in breeding plumage can be mistaken for some varieties of [[stint]], or a sanderling in winter plumage can be mistaken for a [[dunlin]] or [[red knot]]. It can be told from other small wading birds, given good views, by its lack of a hind toe. Its behavior is also distinctive.

== Distribution, habitat and migration ==
[[File:Calidris alba at Ocean Beach, San Francisco, California - 20101116.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Sanderlings at Ocean Beach, San Francisco]]
The sanderling breeds in the High Arctic areas of [[North America]], [[Europe]] and [[Asia]]. In North America, it breeds in the [[Canadian Arctic Archipelago]], [[Nunavut]], [[Greenland]] (and to a lesser extent [[Alaska]]). In [[Palearctic|Eurasia]], it breeds in [[Spitsbergen]] and areas of northern Russia from the [[Taymyr Peninsula]] to the [[New Siberian Islands]]. In the northern winter, it has a nearly [[cosmopolitan distribution]] across the world's marine coasts. It is a complete [[bird migration|migrant]], travelling between {{convert|3000|to|10000|km|mi|sigfig=1|abbr=on}} from its breeding grounds to its wintering sites. Birds that travel further also arrive later and leave sooner. Most adults leave the breeding grounds in July and early August, whereas juvenile birds leave in late August and early September. The northward migration begins in March at the southern end of their winter distribution.<ref name=BNA/>

The breeding habitat of the sanderling is coastal [[tundra]] north of {{convert|5|C|F|abbr=on}} July [[isotherm (contour line)|isotherm]]. The species typically chooses nesting sites on dry stony areas near wet areas, from {{convert|60|m|ft|abbr=on}} above sea level to {{convert|800|m|ft|abbr=on}}. During the winter and its migration, it is most commonly found on coastal sandy [[beach]]es, but also occurs on [[tide|tidal]] sand flats, mud flats and the shores of lakes and rivers. More infrequently, it may occur on rocky shores.<ref name=BNA/>

===Subspecies===

The sanderling consists of two subspecies:

*''C. a. alba'', <small>([[Peter Simon Pallas|Pallas]], 1764)</small>, breeds on [[Ellesmere Island]], north & east [[Greenland]], [[Svalbard]], [[Franz Josef Land]] and the [[Taymyr Peninsula]]
*''C. a. rubida'', <small>([[Johann Friedrich Gmelin|Gmelin]], 1789)</small>, breeds in northeast [[Siberia]], [[Alaska]] and northern [[Canada]]

==Behaviour==

===Feeding behaviour===
[[File:Sanderling (Calidris alba) feeding.jpg|right|thumb|Sanderling feeding]]
Sanderlings feed on invertebrate [[Predation|prey]] buried in the sand in the upper [[intertidal zone]]. In North America, this diet largely consists of the [[Isopoda|isopods]] ''[[Excirolana linguifrons]]'', ''[[Excirolana kincaidii]]'', and the mole crab, ''[[Emerita analoga]]''. When the tide is out, these [[crustacean]]s live in burrows some way beneath the surface. When the tide comes in, they move into the upper layers of sand and feed on the [[plankton]] and [[detritus]] that washes over them with each wave. They then burrow rapidly down again as the water retreats. They leave no marks on the surface, so the sanderlings hunt for them by plunging their beaks into the sand at random, consuming whatever they find. Their bills can penetrate only {{convert|2|or|3|cm|in|abbr=on}} and as the water swirls around and retreats, the sand is softer; this makes it easier for the birds' beaks to penetrate further. In the spring, when much breeding activity is taking place in the [[Benthos|benthic]] community, there may be as many as 4000 invertebrates per square metre, but their average size is smaller than later in the year. The birds appear to rush madly around at the edge of the surf, but in reality they are maximising their chances of catching as many prey animals as possible when they are at their most vulnerable near the surface.<ref name=Schultz1990/>

===Breeding behaviour===
At breeding time sanderlings are [[territory (animal)|territorial]], with the male aggressively defending its territory. They may either form [[monogamy in animals|monogamous pairs]] or [[Polyandry in animals|polyandrous]] (one female and two male) pairings.<ref name="BNA"/>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Sanderling Dan Pancamo.jpg|Sanderling at [[High Island, Texas]]
File:SANDERLING.jpg|A Sanderling in [[Cagayan de Oro]], [[Philippines]]
File:SanderlingsRunningFromWavesCropped.jpg|A flock displaying their distinctive behavior of running with the ebb and flow of waves (while feeding). [[Willapa Bay]], near [[Tokeland, Washington]].
File:OneLeggedSanderling.jpg|Resting at the [[Monterey Bay Aquarium]] [[aviary]].
File:Sanderling-floreana.jpg|Floreana Island, Galapagos Islands
File:Sanderling (with tag).jpg|A banded bird
File:Calidris-alba-001.jpg|Running
File:Sanderling from the Crossley ID Guide Britain and Ireland.jpg|ID composite
File:Sanderling-11MAY2017.JPG|Sanderling in Monterey, California
File:Sanderling (Calidris alba).jpg, Amrum.jpg|Sanderling on the island of Amrum, Schleswig-Holstein
File:Sanderlings (72649).jpg|Sanderlings feeding in [[Quogue, New York]]
File:Sanderlings running in Lima Perú.jpg|A large flock Sanderlings Running in [[Lima]], [[Peru]] 
</gallery>

==Notes==

===Footnotes===
{{Reflist|group=note}}

===References===
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name=BOC>{{cite book |last=Godfrey |first=W. Earl |date=1966 |title=The Birds of Canada |location=Ottawa |publisher=National Museum of Canada |pages=164–165}}</ref>
<ref name=BNA>{{cite journal |url=http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/653 |title=Sanderling (''Calidris alba'') |last1=Macwhirter |first1=Bruce |first2=Peter Jr. |last2=Austin-Smith |first3=Donald |last3=Kroodsma |year=2002 |journal=The Birds of North America Online |location=Ithaca |publisher=Cornell Lab of Ornithology |access-date=29 April 2009 |doi=10.2173/bna.653|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
<ref name=Sibley>{{cite book |last=Sibley |first=David Allen |author-link=David Allen Sibley |date=2000 |title=The Sibley Guide to Birds |location=New York |publisher=Knopf |page=[https://archive.org/details/sibleyguidetobir00sibl_0/page/182 182] |isbn=0-679-45122-6 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/sibleyguidetobir00sibl_0/page/182 }}</ref>
<ref name=Schultz1990>{{cite book |last=Schultz |first=Stewart T. |title=The Northwest Coast: A Natural History |year=1990 |publisher=Timber Press, Inc. |location=Portland, OR |pages=129–130 |isbn=978-1461060765 }}</ref>
}}
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |title=The Birds of Turkey |first1=Guy |last1=Kirwan |first2=Barbaros |last2=Demirci |first3=Hilary |last3=Welch |first4=Kerem |last4=Boyla |first5=Metehan |last5=Özen |first6=Peter |last6=Castell |first7=Tim |last7=Marlow |year=2008 |publisher=Helm |isbn=9781408104750 |ref={{harvid|Kirwan et al.|2008}} }}
{{refend}}

==External links==
<!-- CurrBiol17:R449. Micronesica38:221. -->
{{Commons category|Calidris alba}}
{{Wikispecies|Calidris alba}}
* [http://sabap2.adu.org.za/docs/sabap1/281.pdf Sanderling Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds]
* {{InternetBirdCollection|sanderling-calidris-alba|Sanderling}}
* [http://www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/BirdGuide/Sanderling.html Sanderling Species Account] — Cornell Lab of Ornithology
* [http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i2480id.html Sanderling - ''Calidris alba''] — USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter
* {{VIREO|sanderling}}
* {{BirdLife|22693369|Calidris alba}}
* {{Avibase|name=Calidris alba}}
* {{NeotropicalBirds|sander|Sanderling}}
* {{IUCN_Map|22693369/166254550|Calidris alba}}
* {{Xeno-canto species|Calidris|alba|Sanderling}}
* {{field guide birds of the world|Calidris alba}}
* {{ARKive}}

{{Scolopacidae|1}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q58958}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Calidris]]
[[Category:Erolia]]
[[Category:Sandpipers]]
[[Category:Birds of the Arctic]]
[[Category:Birds of the Dominican Republic]]
[[Category:Birds of the Caribbean]]
[[Category:Cosmopolitan birds]]
[[Category:Birds described in 1764]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Peter Simon Pallas]]
[[Category:Holarctic birds]]