About Bartramia longicauda (Bechstein, 1812)
Bartramia longicauda (Bechstein, 1812), commonly called the upland sandpiper, has the following description and range details. Adult individuals are approximately 30 cm (12 in) long, with a wingspan of 66 cm (26 in) and an average weight of 170 g (6 oz). This species has a distinctive shape: a small, dove-like head set on a long neck. The back and wings are heavily marbled in black and brown. The neck is streaked with dark brown, and this streaking extends down through the breast to the flanks. The belly and undertail coverts are white. Compared to other sandpipers, this species has a quite long tail. Upland sandpipers also have a white eye-ring and long yellow legs. This species breeds across a large North American range: from eastern Alaska, southeast of the Rocky Mountains through Montana to northern Oklahoma, then northeast to Pennsylvania, New England, and the extreme southern portions of Quebec and Ontario. There are also separate local breeding populations in northeast Oregon and west central Idaho. They spend the winter in northeastern Argentina, Uruguay, and southern Brazil. It is an extremely rare vagrant to Europe and the South Pacific, with only one recorded sighting each from Australia and New Zealand. Despite being classified as sandpipers, upland sandpipers prefer open country with tall grasses over coastal habitat. In eastern North America, they are also found at airports, blueberry farms, and abandoned strip mines. The species' true core range and habitat lies in the northern midwest United States.
