Sanderling
Calidris alba
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassAves (Aus)
- OrderCharadriiformes (Caradriformes)
- FamilyScolopacidae (Sandpipers and Allies)
- GenusCalidris (Calidris Sandpipers)
- SpeciesCalidris alba (Sanderling)
The sanderling (Calidris alba) is a small wading bird. It is a circumpolar Arctic breeder, being among the most extreme northern breeding birds in the world, nesting only on the coldest tundra, north of the 5°C July isotherm; in Europe, its southernmost breeding locality is Svalbard, where only a handful (5–15) pairs breed. It is a long-distance migrant, wintering south to South America, western and southern Europe, Africa, and Australia. It is highly gregarious in winter, sometimes forming large flocks on coastal mudflats or sandy beaches. It is somewhat unlike other small sandpipers in appearance, in particular in lacking a hind toe, which has led to the suggestion that it should be placed into a monotypic genus Crocethia. More recent reviews indicate that the sanderling is a fairly typical "stint" or small sandpiper and should be retained along with the knots and other relatives in the genus Calidris. Wikipedia →
<5% of wildlife watchers report a Sanderling sighting in Acadia National Park, based on 87 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
Closest Relatives at Acadia National Park
Purple Sandpiper
Calidris maritima
Least Sandpiper
Calidris minutilla
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Calidris pusilla
White-rumped Sandpiper
Calidris fuscicollis
Dunlin
Calidris alpina
Pectoral Sandpiper
Calidris melanotos
Baird's Sandpiper
Calidris bairdii
Stilt Sandpiper
Calidris himantopus
Red Knot
Calidris canutus
Spotted Sandpiper
Actitis macularius
Greater Yellowlegs
Tringa melanoleuca
Hudsonian Whimbrel
Numenius hudsonicus
📅 Monthly Probability
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Sanderling in Acadia National Park?
About 1% of wildlife watchers report a Sanderling sighting in Acadia National Park, based on 87 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Sanderling in Acadia National Park?
November has the highest sighting rate for Sanderling in Acadia National Park in our monthly data.