SOUTHEASTERN CARIBBEAN BIRDS PHOTO GALLERY

Trinidad and Tobago Field Naturalists' Club         Southeastern Caribbean Bird Alert         Trinidad and Tobago Rare Bird Committee

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Wood Sandpiper (Tringa glareola)

Immature at Buccoo, Tobago, 30 December 1996. Photo © by Peggy Keller. First record for T&T and South America. Found by Doug McRae and Wayne Peterson, this bird was present until at least 27 February 1997 (see field notes by Floyd Hayes). The following characters distinguish it from the Lesser Yellowlegs (T. flavipes) at right and Solitary Sandpiper (T. solitaria) behind it: smaller size than yellowlegs, similar to Solitary; prominent whitish supercilium, absent in both yellowlegs and Solitary; browner upperparts; and dull greenish legs, shorter and darker than yellowlegs. Although not visible in these photos, in flight the bird had light grey underwings and a white tail heavily marked with fine dusky barring. For further details, see: Petersen, W. R., and D. McRae. 2002. Noteworthy bird records for Trinidad and Tobago, including first reports of Wood Sandpiper (Tringa glareola) and White-eyed Vireo (Vireo griseus). Department of Life Sciences, University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Occasional Paper 11:204-206.