Banner Photo by Ann Kramer

Featured Bird

MEET THE LONG-billed DOWITCHER (Limnodromus scolopaceus) – by Jeff Sinker

If you are new to shorebirds and have trouble telling the Long-billed Dowitcher from the very similar Short-billed Dowitcher, do not despair because more experienced birders can be flummoxed by these two species. Females do have considerably longer bills than those of Short-billed Dowitchers, but males often do not, so bill length cannot be relied upon as the defining field mark.

The chunky, front-heavy, Long-billed Dowitcher is a medium-distance migrant. Breeding adults are richly colored with cinnamon below and dark brown above. Non-breeding and young birds are paler overall. The prominent eyestripe extending from the base of the bill, above the eye and towards the back of the head is visible in all ages and seasons. In flight, a distinctive white upper-rump patch helps to separate these shorebirds from others, except of course from the Short-billed Dowitcher! When feeding, Long-billed Dowitchers have a hunchback posture (Short-billed are straight-backed).

Spring migration finds Long-billed Dowitchers widespread along the west coast from Feb. through mid-to-late May. Fall migration begins in July and will extend into Oct. or Nov. because the latest migrants don’t leave Russia and Alaska until Sept. or Oct. These birds are common in Washington State, along the coast and in Puget Sound. They have excellent night vision, so they can extend their feeding periods into darkness. Their unique “sewing machine” motion as they probe deep into the mud for insects and aquatic invertebrates sets them apart from other shorebirds. The ends of their bills are equipped with Herbst corpuscles which allow them to find prey by touch.

Preferred habitats are sedge meadows and wet lowlands or foothills for nesting. During migration and on non-breeding grounds, estuaries, marshes, flooded fields, small ponds and the like are all utilized. Nests are placed in marsh vegetation near the edge of a small pond. A successful pair will raise one brood, 3-5 eggs incubated for 21-22 days, and the male looks after the young when they leave the nest shortly after hatching. Long-billed Dowitchers do not seem to be overly territorial on their breeding grounds, but not a lot is known about this because they nest in some of the most remote places on the planet.

Unfortunately, the 2025 State of the Birds report lists Long-billed Dowitchers as an Orange Alert Tipping Point species. This is because over the past 50 years they have lost more than 50% of their population. Additionally, over the last decade, their decline has continued to accelerate. Specific causes have not been identified but likely reasons are long-term loss of western wetlands, pollution and climate change.

Learn more: www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Long-billed_Dowitcher

Range map: www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Long-billed_Dowitcher

Photo credit: Long-billed Dowitcher by Tyler Ficker/Macaulay Library

Range map: yellow (migration); blue (non-breeding); orange (breeding)