Little Curlew
Little Curlew
Numenius minutus
At a Glance
An uncommon Asian shorebird, smallest of the curlews. Closely related to the nearly-extinct Eskimo Curlew, and like that species it forages in grassy fields more often than on shores or mudflats. Stray migrants, far off-course, have been found a few times in California and Alaska.
All bird guide text and rangemaps adapted from Lives of North American Birds by Kenn Kaufman© 1996, used by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Category
Sandpiper-like Birds
IUCN Status
Least Concern
Habitat
Coasts and Shorelines, Fields, Meadows, and Grasslands
Behavior
Flap/Glide, Running
Range & Identification
Description
12" (30 cm). A very small curlew, half the bulk of a Whimbrel. Thin bill is only a little longer than head and only slightly down-curved. Brown above, paler below, with narrow dark bars on flanks. Has dark head stripes like a Whimbrel but the dark eye-line doesn't extend in front of the eye, leaving the lores mostly pale, not dark.
Size
About the size of a Crow, About the size of a Robin
Wing Shape
Broad, Pointed, Tapered
Tail Shape
Rounded, Short, Square-tipped, Wedge-shaped
Songs and Calls
Multiple calls, including a whistled, musical quee-dlee.
Sign up for Audubon's newsletter to learn more about birds like the Little Curlew