Sanderling, Calidris alba (synonyms; Crocethia alba or Erolia alba, formerly; Calidris arenaria and Calidris leucophaea, protonym; Tringa alba), also occasionally known as the ruddy plover, photographed at Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary, Texas (USA).
Image: Joseph Kennedy, 16 May 2011 [velociraptorize].
Nikon D200, Kowa 883 telescope with TSN-PZ camera eyepiece 1/1250s f/8.0 at 1000.0mm iso400
Question: This cute little North American mystery bird has had half a dozen scientific names, but surprisingly, only one common name. Can you identify this species' common name and tell me one of its many scientific names?
Response: This is an adult sanderling, Calidris alba, in breeding plumage. This species is a high arctic breeder with a circumpolar distribution, and it's also a long-distance migrant. I think it's interesting that this species has only one common name in common use (although it is sometimes known as the ruddy plover), despite its large range. Most birds with large ranges seem to have half a dozen common names.
Even though this radio programme (by my friends at BirdNote Radio) talks about winter migration in the sanderling, it quotes Rachel Carson, a scientist whose magical writing is singularly beautiful, so I had to include it anyway, just so you can savour what she says about this species:
You are invited to review all of the daily mystery birds by going to their dedicated graphic index page.
If you have bird images, video or mp3 files that you'd like to share with a large and (mostly) appreciative international audience here at The Guardian, feel free to contact me to learn more.
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