Listen to the semipalmated sandpiper
Tip: press play to see the sound's live frequency spectrum in blue over the waveform.
About the semipalmated sandpiper
The semipalmated sandpiper is a bird in the family Scolopacidae (order Charadriiformes). Its conservation status on the IUCN Red List is “near threatened”. Adults have a wingspan of about 36 cm.
What does the semipalmated sandpiper sound like?
Birds produce sound with the syrinx, a vocal organ deep in the chest that can make two independent sounds at once. Songs tend to be long and patterned and are used to hold territory and attract a mate; calls are short signals for contact, alarm and flight.
The recordings here are labelled as calidris pusilla. Listen for differences in rhythm, pitch and repetition – the spectrum display makes it easy to see whether a sound is a pure whistle (a thin line), a harsh call (a broad band) or a trill (rapid repeated marks).
From Wikipedia
The semipalmated sandpiper (Calidris pusilla) is a very small shorebird. The genus name is from Ancient Greek kalidris or skalidris, a term used by Aristotle for some grey-coloured waterside birds. The specific pusilla is Latin for "very small".
Within the genus Calidris, the semipalmated sandpiper is most closely related to the western sandpiper (Calidris mauri). It was formerly sometimes separated with some other stints in either Ereunetes or Erolia, but these placements would leave the rest of Calidris a paraphyletic group.
Related birds in the genus Calidris
More from the family Scolopacidae
Frequently asked questions
What does a semipalmated sandpiper sound like?
You can hear 1 recording of the semipalmated sandpiper on this page, including its calidris pusilla. Birds produce sound with the syrinx, a vocal organ deep in the chest that can make two independent sounds at once.
Is the semipalmated sandpiper endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the semipalmated sandpiper as “near threatened”.
What family does the semipalmated sandpiper belong to?
The semipalmated sandpiper (Calidris pusilla) belongs to the family Scolopacidae in the order Charadriiformes.
Sources & credits
- Calidris pusilla by Tony Phillips – CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
- Wikidata Q735092 – CC0
- Wikipedia: Semipalmated sandpiper – CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo by Rhododendrites – CC BY-SA 4.0