Broad-billed Sandpiper

1 records

While counting shorebirds Rick Heil was shocked to come upon a Broad-billed Sandpiper among a group of calidrids. He was able to study it with a 60x zoom for a total of 15 minutes from as close as 80 yards and in excellent light. At that distance even the specific feather detail was clear, and he was able to age it as a worn juvenile. This Asian vagrant is generally uncommon, even within its range, but in August of 2002 there was an influx of Broad-bills in Europe, with greater than normal numbers from England to Hungary. The appearance of this individual is most likely associated with this incursion, although an Asian origin cannot be ruled out. The only photographically documented record in North American (outside Alaska) was in New York in August 1998 (North American Birds, Vol. 53, No. 1: p. 36), but there is a convincing sight record from Nova Scotia in September 1990 (American Birds, Vol. 45, No. 1: p. 69). Broad-billed Sandpiper is a very distinctive species, with a unique bill and head pattern, and despite the fact that there was only a single observer, the description and accompanying sketch eliminated the possibility of any other species for this first state record.