Purple Sandpiper

Calidris maritima (Brünnich, 1764)

65 gWeight

The purple sandpiper (Calidris maritima) is a small shorebird in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae.

Busiest months: November–January · Most records: United States, Canada, United Kingdom

Least Concern

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: November–January · Most records: United States, Canada, United Kingdom

Purple Sandpiper has been recorded at 414 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 32 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Barnegat Lighthouse SPUnited States5,909 records
Ocean City InletUnited States4,476 records
Húsavík – hafnarsvæðiIceland1,427 records

More places

Stone Harbor PointUnited States1,328 records
Quai, Pointe-au-PèreCanada1,173 records
Halibut Point SPUnited States1,118 records
Hammonasset Beach SPUnited States1,070 records
GirdlenessUnited Kingdom945 records
Cape Island – CMP – Coral Ave. dune crossingUnited States888 records
Jones Beach SP – West EndUnited States719 records

Countries and regions with the most records

United States Canada United Kingdom Iceland Norway Svalbard & Jan Mayen Germany Netherlands

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The purple sandpiper (Calidris maritima) is a small shorebird in the sandpiper family Scolopacidae. This is a hardy sandpiper that breeds in the arctic and subarctic regions of Eurasia and North America and winters further south on the Atlantic coast.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Purple Sandpiper?

The Purple Sandpiper weighs around 65 g.

Where does the Purple Sandpiper live?

Its breeding range: North America, Palearctic: high to low montane Arctic of North Atlantic and Arctic oceans: Greenland (except northern, northeastern), Iceland, Jan Mayen (northeast of Iceland), Bear Island and Svalbard (north of Norway), Scandinavia to far northwestern Russia, Franz Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya (north of northwestern Siberia) and Severnaya Zemlya and Taymyr Peninsula (north-central Siberia); Banks to southern Ellesmere and Baffin islands (north-central Canada). It is most often recorded in United States, Canada and United Kingdom.

When is the best time to see the Purple Sandpiper?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in January, November and December (Northern Hemisphere).

Is the Purple Sandpiper endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Purple Sandpiper as Least Concern.

What does the Purple Sandpiper eat?

Main food: Fish, shrimp & shellfish.

What family is the Purple Sandpiper in?

It belongs to the family Sandpipers, Snipes (Scolopacidae), order Charadriiformes.

At a glance

Weight: 65 g
Habitat: Grassland
Diet: Fish, shrimp & shellfish
Lifestyle: Active on the ground
Migration: Migratory
Conservation: Least Concern

More measurements

Wing: 121 mm
Tail: 55 mm
Bill: 33 mm
Tarsus: 22 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

North America, Palearctic: high to low montane Arctic of North Atlantic and Arctic oceans: Greenland (except northern, northeastern), Iceland, Jan Mayen (northeast of Iceland), Bear Island and Svalbard (north of Norway), Scandinavia to far northwestern Russia, Franz Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya (north of northwestern Siberia) and Severnaya Zemlya and Taymyr Peninsula (north-central Siberia); Banks to southern Ellesmere and Baffin islands (north-central Canada)

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2