The sharp-tailed sandpiper is a medium-sized shorebird, 6.7-8.7 inches (17-22 cm) in length with a wingspan of 14.2-17 inches (36-43 cm).
Its back, wings, and tail are rusty-brown, black, and white. It has a light cream-to-tan lower chest and belly and a reddish-brown cap.
Its bill is sharp, long, and black. It has long, white-to-gray legs and a sharp tail.
The sharp-tailed sandpiper can be found in grassy areas of coastal marshes and on tidal flats.
The sharp-tailed sandpiper eats mosquito larvae. It also eats mollusks and crustaceans.
The male sharp-tailed sandpiper mates with more than one female. The female builds a nest of grass on the tundra. She lays an average of 4 eggs. The chicks hatch in 19-23 days.
They are precocial and leave the nest after a day or so and begin to feed themselves. They fledge (develop flight feathers) when they are 18-21 days old.
The sharp-tailed sandpiper has a lifespan of up to 8 years in the wild.
The sharp-tailed sandpiper migrates thousands of miles from its breeding grounds on the tundra of Siberia to winter in Australia and New Zealand.
During migration, sharp-tailed sandpipers may join mixed flocks with other sandpipers and are known for their strong, direct flight and alert, busy behavior.
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The sharp-tailed sandpiper breeds on the Siberian tundra and winters in Australia and New Zealand.
Migrating birds appear in Alaska and western Canada and in small numbers along the West Coast in the fall.
