Upland Sandpiper

Bartramia longicauda

A true sandpiper, but almost never found on mudflats with its cousins, the Upland Sandpiper is a bird of grasslands and prairies.  It is most often seen as it perches on fence posts or stumps.  Upland Sandpiper males can also often be seen (and heard) during their courtship flights, in which they circle high overhead, singing a loud, carrying song.  Adults perform loud distraction displays upon too close of an approach to an active nest.

Habitat: Prefers native grasslands and prairies.  In parts of the United States where such habitat is now rare (such as in the Northeast), Upland Sandpipers are most often found around airports and other such areas of with large expanses of managed grasses.

Diet: Primarily insects.  Also earthworms, seeds, and waste grain.

Behavior: Often perches on fence posts and other elevated perches above the grassland, but when feeding, typically walks through the grassland, picking up food items from the ground or from the surface of the vegetation.

Nesting: Late May through July

Breeding Map: Breeding Bird Survey map

Song: Flight song is a strange bubbling whistle, slowly rising then falling.

Migration: Summers in the Plains states, the Midwest, and locally in the northeastern U.S., as well as the plains of central and western Canada.  A long-distance migrant, wintering in South America.

Similar Species: Buff-breasted Sandpiper

Conservation Status: After being seriously depleted due to hunting in the 19th century, Upland Sandpipers have recovered locally, but are still not as common as they probably once were.  Noted declines have occurred in the Eastern United States in the last few decades.

Further Information: 1) USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter, Upland Sandpiper

2) Cornell Lab of Ornithology - Upland Sandpiper

3) eNature.com - Upland Sandpiper

Photo Information: July 16th, 2004 -- 25 miles southwest of Pierre -- Terry Sohl

Additional Photos: Click on the image chips or text links below for additional, higher-resolution Upland Sandpiper photos.