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Bird Droppings<br />
Dispatches from the nation’s birdwatching capital… by Seymore Thanu<br />
Bye, bye winter shorebirds. If you<br />
are an inveterate beach stroller, you<br />
have undoubtedly grown accustomed<br />
to the hordes of pallid sandpipers<br />
who play tag with the waves.<br />
These are Sanderling, one of the sandpiper<br />
species that breed in the Arctic and winter<br />
along sandy beaches from New England to<br />
the tip of South America, giving Sanderling<br />
one of the longest and narrowest longitudinal<br />
winter ranges among birds. They will leave<br />
by May for breeding areas in the High Arctic.<br />
Another winter resident counting down the<br />
days is the Purple Sandpiper — another High<br />
Arctic breeder whose winter range extends as<br />
far north as Greenland, making it one of two<br />
shorebirds to winter in far northern regions.<br />
Incomparably hardy, Purple Sandpiper<br />
forage in the rough and tumble splash zone of<br />
rocky coasts. You say, we have no rocky coast?<br />
You are correct, but we do have rock jetties<br />
and Purple Sandpipers are expansive with<br />
regards to rocky coasts. Two winter residents<br />
both adapted to life between the waves, but<br />
with different feeding techniques. They are<br />
here for a few more weeks before leaving for<br />
the Arctic with a narrow window of time allocated<br />
to Arctic breeders. One clutch, averaging<br />
four eggs, one chance to avoid marauding<br />
gulls, Arctic foxes, and hunting birds to move<br />
their genetic dowery forward.<br />
You do see Sanderling in summer — they<br />
have bred, or failed to, arriving first, followed<br />
by successful breeding adults, then young.<br />
This staggered migration schedule prevents<br />
a species from crowding migratory<br />
stopover areas where young birds will be out<br />
competed by adults. Unlike songbirds, shorebird<br />
young can fend for themselves within<br />
hours of hatching. Only one parent tends to<br />
young, offering protection but no food which<br />
is why Sanderling get a jump on migration in<br />
summer. The early migrants are the parents<br />
freed of parenting. Male or female? It depends<br />
on the species. Both adults can incubate eggs<br />
and brood pre-fledged young. Young cannot<br />
thermo-regulate. Cold summer temperatures<br />
are not a factor in New Jersey so beach-nesting<br />
adult Piping Plovers must shade chicks to<br />
prevent overheating and lead them to feeding<br />
areas where the chicks do the rest.<br />
They may look like poor, frail sandpipers<br />
but behind these bundles of feathers is an<br />
amazing back story about the tiny birds that<br />
continue to beat the odds and move their<br />
genes forward. Next time you are walking<br />
any Cape May Beach and come across feeding<br />
sandpipers, take a minute to marvel.<br />
April 22, 2021 EXIT ZERO Page 35
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