# Least Sandpiper

*Calidris minutilla*

The Least Sandpiper is the smallest shorebird in the world, weighing only about 1 ounce—roughly the same as a single AA battery.

- **Taxonomy:** Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Charadriiformes › Scolopacidae › Calidris
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** decreasing
- **Biome:** wetland
- **Habitat:** Mudflats, salt marshes, damp meadows, and sandy shores.
- **Diet:** Small invertebrates including crustaceans, insects, snails, and marine worms.
- **Range:** North America, Central America, South America, Caribbean
- **Size:** 13-15 cm in length; wingspan of 27-28 cm
- **Lifespan:** 4-9 years
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Wetland degradation, coastal development, and climate-induced changes to Arctic breeding grounds.
- **Safe to approach?:** Harmless. These birds are sensitive to disturbance while feeding. Maintain a distance of at least 30 meters; if the bird stops foraging to watch you, move back. Do not allow dogs to chase them.

## About

The least sandpiper ( Calidris minutilla ) is the smallest shorebird. The genus name is from Ancient Greek kalidris or skalidris , a term used by Aristotle for some grey-coloured waterside birds. The specific minutilla is Medieval Latin for "very small".

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/5b6e2d51-88a2-440a-9669-f674b686f7ad
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/3864
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calidris minutilla
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/170452083/medium.jpeg (Bill Levine, CC-BY, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.