It was fascinating to watch these Purple Sandpipers in flight, changing direction as one in a split second. Purple Sandpipers have the northernmost winter range of any shorebird, spending their summers on the arctic tundra, and wintering in Maine. These medium-sized shorebirds migrate south to Maine in the fall and spend the winters on Maine’s rocky coast, picking through rockweed looking for small crabs and other sea life. Maine is a key state for purple sandpipers, and it's estimated that 1/3 to ½ of the entire western Atlantic population winters in Maine.
Amazing birds. Appreciated the info, thanks Jean xx I looked up to see if we have them in NZ as I don't recall ever seeing any in the estuary wetlands. Sadly, they're not in abundance here... "The Calidris sandpipers are a bewildering group of small to medium-sized waders, many of which are very similar to each other. Almost all are long-distance migrants, and so are capable of crossing the vast expanses of ocean required to get to New Zealand. Four members of the genus visit New Zealand often enough to be considered regular migrants, but another 12 species have been identified in New Zealand on at least one occasion. The sharp-tailed sandpiper is one of the regulars, along with lesser knot, r…