This bird travels 8,000 miles with its own rice spoon: a cross-time zone traveler

There is a small bird that has its own "rice spoon" and is very cute when foraging. It is affectionately called "little spoon" by domestic bird watchers. However, because it is a critically endangered species, there are only more than 600 left in the world. It is very precious and is also called the "giant panda among birds."

Can you guess what bird this is?

Yes! That’s it! Spoon-billed Sandpiper! This cute little creature comes with its own “rice spoon”!

Photo taken by Li Dongming on the Yellow Sea mudflats in Yancheng Source: Yellow Sea Wetland World Natural Heritage

Comes with its own "rice spoon", cute

The hook-billed sandpiper is a small wading bird of the family Scolopidae. It is only 14 to 16 centimeters long, about the size of a human fist. Its beak is black, with a spade-shaped end, and looks like a small pocket spoon. It is very serious when foraging, and is called a bird with a "self-contained rice spoon" by many bird lovers.

The feather color of the Spoon-billed Sandpiper is very special and changes with the seasons. In summer, its upper body is black with brown-red feather edges on the back; in winter, the back of the feathers is gray-brown with black-brown feather shaft patterns.

Image source: Bird Lover International

The spoon-billed sandpiper's foraging is more similar to that of a duck, which is also filter-feeding, mainly insects, insect larvae, crustaceans and other small invertebrates. The spoon-billed sandpiper mainly relies on its "little spoon" to hunt in the mud, and its beak helps it better sense prey in the mud.

Spoon-billed sandpiper often moves alone in shallow water and soft mud. When walking, it often lowers its head and constantly puts its beak into the water or mud, sweeping its beak back and forth in the water or mud as it walks. Even when turning back, it does not need to take its beak out of the water.

Spoon-billed Sandpiper hunting

Critically endangered species, the "giant panda" among birds

The Spoon-billed Sandpiper is one of the rarest birds in the world. It is not only noteworthy for its appearance, but more importantly for its current population size.

Due to environmental destruction and habitat shrinkage, there are only more than 600 left in the world, far fewer than giant pandas. It is listed as a critically endangered species on the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species and was officially "upgraded" to become a first-class protected animal in my country in February 2021.

It is estimated that the number of mature individuals of Spoon-billed Sandpiper is about 240-456, roughly equivalent to 360-684 individuals, and this number may be decreasing.

Image source: China Jiangsu Network

Due to habitat degradation and loss caused by human activities and environmental pollution, as well as illegal hunting and other factors, the living environment of Spoon-billed Sandpiper is facing extremely severe challenges. According to data from recent years, the population of Spoon-billed Sandpiper is still decreasing at a rate of 8% per year.

Spoon-billed sandpipers are very particular about their breeding grounds. According to recent studies, they only breed in the tundra along the northeastern coast of Siberia, with the most important breeding ground being the Chukotka Peninsula at the northeastern tip of Eurasia. Every June and July, the spoon-billed sandpipers migrating from the south begin courting, building nests, and preparing for breeding. They nest in tundra swamps, lakes, ponds, stream banks, and coastal tundra and grasslands, and they particularly like mossy grasslands beside freshwater ponds.

Due to floods, predation by various natural enemies and food shortages, the Spoon-billed Sandpiper's breeding success rate is not high. Each nest lays 3 to 4 eggs, and only 20% to 30% of the eggs can hatch successfully and eventually survive. The harsh selection of breeding sites, the narrow breeding area and the low breeding success rate are the important reasons for the low natural population of the Spoon-billed Sandpiper.

Spoon-billed sandpipers usually forage in groups with other small shorebirds. Photo by Chen Jie

A super traveler who flies across 8,000 miles and crosses time zones

The homeland of the Spoon-billed Sandpiper is the Chukotka Peninsula in northeastern Siberia, Russia. It is a long-distance migratory bird that flies from Russia to Thailand, India, Indochina, Singapore, the Malay Peninsula and other Southeast Asian regions every year to spend the winter.

Image source: Hainan Daily Client

Spoon-billed sandpipers breed only in very rare permafrost areas and spend the winter in wetlands in Southeast Asia. Every August and September, after completing their breeding mission, they quickly begin long-distance migration. They travel along the East Asia-Australia migration route, crossing the Arctic Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Pacific Ocean, to East Asia and Southeast Asia to spend the winter, a total journey of about 8,000 kilometers.

Due to the long route, the "little spoon" often stops in Yancheng, Jiangsu, my country, where they rest and replenish their energy. Like our human travel, the northward migration of the "little spoon" also requires adequate preparation.

Photo taken by Li Dongming on the Yellow Sea mudflats in Yancheng Source: Yellow Sea Wetland World Natural Heritage

In autumn, the Yellow Sea Wetland in Yancheng seems to have become a big dining table. This is the best time to observe the Spoon-billed Sandpiper and other migratory shorebirds. In September and October, different batches of Spoon-billed Sandpipers arrive one after another, with the number exceeding 100. At the same time, there are also many other shorebirds on the tidal flats. The small figure of the Spoon-billed Sandpiper is often drowned out by 20,000, 50,000, or even more small shorebirds.

Photo taken by Li Dongming on the Yellow Sea mudflats in Yancheng Source: Yellow Sea Wetland World Natural Heritage

During their migration to the south, the Spoon-billed Sandpiper will stop and molt in places such as the Yellow Sea Wetland in Yancheng, and then fly to southern China and Southeast Asia to spend the winter. If the weather gets colder, these little guys will no longer be able to "stay" in the Yellow Sea Wetland, and can only follow the footsteps of their predecessors and fly to warm wintering grounds.

Image source: Bird Lover International

Don't be fooled by its small body, its energy is enormous. It is a super powerful cross-time zone traveler.

"Birds have the final say on whether the ecology is good or not." Spoon-billed sandpipers have high requirements for their habitats. Spoon-billed sandpipers can be found in Yancheng, Yangxi, Zhanjiang, Jinzhou and other places, indicating that the local ecological environment is excellent. I hope to see more cute "little spoons" in the future!

Source: Hainan Daily, Fudan University Zujia Biological Museum, Zhanjiang Daily, China National Geographic Exploration, Bird Love International, Popular Science, Yancheng Release, CEAAF

References:

Sun Renjie. “Critically Endangered Cute Species” Spoon-billed Sandpiper[J]. Guangxi Forestry, 2017(04):25-26.

He Bo, Cai Zhiyang, Zhang Lin, Gan Xiaojing, Liu Wenliang, Li Jing, Jiang Zhongyou, Wang Songlin, Ma Zhijun. Distribution status and main threats of Spoon-billed Sandpiper in China[J]. Chinese Journal of Zoology, 2017, 52(01): 158-166.

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Editor: Guru