Sanderling (Calidris alba), Ganado Lake, Apache County

This Sanderling was discovered by Charlie Babbitt and Bud Johnson at Granado Lake on 17 May 2008.  It was photographed by Charlie.

Sanderling is a casual spring transient in most of the state.  Like most shorebirds, it is more likely in the fall.  It is therefore very rare to see a Sanderling in breeding plumage in Arizona.  Although most field guides show breeding Sanderling as having a bright rusty-orange head, its plumage is actually quite variable and some individuals, like this one, can be very dull.  This is due to a number of factors.  There is quite a bit of individual variation and females average duller than males.  Many individuals do not complete molt until they reach the breeding grounds.  In fresh plumage, the feathers have white tips that wear away to reveal more rusty later in the spring.  In turn, these rusty tips wear away and bleach and the birds can again turn quite gray by July before molting into winter plumage.

Sanderling in this plumage is best told by the bill, which is black, stocky, straight and blunt-tipped, by the lack of the face pattern, by the dark upper breast and by the few bright rusty feathers scattered in the plumage.  In flight, all Sanderlings show a very prominent white wing stripe. 

17 May 2008, photo by Charlie Babbitt