Short-billed dowitcher | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Aves |
Order: | Charadriiformes |
Family: | Scolopacidae |
Genus: | Limnodromus |
Species: | L. griseus
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Binomial name | |
Limnodromus griseus (Gmelin, JF, 1789)
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Breeding Migration Nonbreeding
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Synonyms | |
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The short-billed dowitcher (Limnodromus griseus), like its congener the long-billed dowitcher, is a medium-sized, stocky, long-billed shorebird in the family Scolopacidae.
It is an inhabitant of North America, Central America, the Caribbean, and northern South America.[2] It is strongly migratory; it completely vacates in breeding areas during the snow-bound months.[3] This species favors a variety of habitats including tundra in the north to ponds and mudflats in the south. It feeds on invertebrates often by rapidly probing its bill into mud in a sewing machine fashion.[4] It and the very similar long-billed dowitcher were considered one species until 1950.[5] Field identification of the two American Limnodromus remains difficult today. Distinguishing wintering or juvenile short-billed dowitchers from the long-billed species is very difficult and, even given examination their subtlety different body shapes, cannot always be isolated to a particular species. They differ most substantially in vocalizations. The names of American dowitchers are misleading, as there is much overlap in their bill lengths.[4][5] Only a small percentage can be identified by this character alone.[5]
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