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Gray-tailed Tattler

Tringa brevipesOrder: CHARADRIIFORMES Family: Sandpipers (Scolopacidae)
Codes: Common Name: GTTA Scientific Name: TRIBRE ITIS Taxonomic No.: 176626
Least Concern
 
Gray-tailed Tattler Breeding Male
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The orange "blossum" replaces the lid of a jelly jar.
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Overview

Gray-tailed Tattler: Medium sandpiper with gray upperparts and cap, white eyebrow and throat, gray streaked breast, and pale gray underparts. Wings and tail are dark. Legs and feet are yellow. Eats insects and larvae, picks up food in sand and water. Direct flight, quick wing beats.

Range and Habitat

Gray-tailed Tattler: Occurs as a regular spring and fall migrant on the outer Aleutian Islands, Pribilofs, and St. Lawrence Island, and casually on the Alaska coast, north to Point Barrow; there are single records from Washington and California.

Topo Map: Sandpiper-like Body


Listen to Call

Voice Text

"tu-weeeeeet", "klee-klee"

Interesting Facts

 The Gray-tailed Tattler is also known as the Gray-rumped Tattler, the Gray-rumped Sandpiper, the Siberian Tattler, and the Polynesian Tattler.

 It is closely related to its North American counterpart, the Wandering Tattler and is difficult to distinguish from that species.

 A group of tattlers are collectively known as a "whisper" of tattlers.


Bird Term Glossary



Author

Gary Owen Dick

Artist

Samira Belous

Splitbar
Range Map for Gray-tailed Tattler

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Family Sandpiper (Scolopacidae)_blue
Species Tringa brevipes
Length10 Inches
Wingspan20 Inches

Gray-tailed Tattler

Gray-tailed Tattler: Medium sandpiper with gray upperparts and cap, white eyebrow and throat, gray streaked breast, and pale gray underparts. Wings and tail are dark. Legs and feet are yellow. Eats insects and larvae, picks up food in sand and water. Direct flight, quick wing beats.

● Song: "tu-weeeeeet", "klee-klee"

● Foraging & Feeding: Gray-tailed Tattler: Feeds on arthropods and other invertebrates; forages on the ground.

● Breeding & nesting: Gray-tailed Tattler: Four light blue eggs speckled with black are laid on the bare ground sheltered by rocks; sometimes uses an abandoned thrush nest. Incubation ranges from 24 to 25 days and is carried out by both parents.

● Similar species: Gray-tailed Tattler: Wandering Tattler has more distinct bars on underparts and darker gray upperparts.

Flight Pattern

Quick direct effortless flight with rapid flicking wing beats.
Gray-tailed Tattler Breeding Male Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Gray-tailed Tattler: Occurs as a regular spring and fall migrant on the outer Aleutian Islands, Pribilofs, and St. Lawrence Island, and casually on the Alaska coast, north to Point Barrow; there are single records from Washington and California.
BreedingMonogamous, Loose colonies
PopulationUncommon to rare
MigrationMigratory
Weight3.8 Ounces
Sandpiper-like BodyX
UnderpartsX
Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.
UpperpartsX
Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.
BreastX
The upper front part of a bird.
CapX
The area on top of the head of the bird.
EyebrowX
Also called the supercilicum or superciliary it is the arch of feathers over each eye.
4 and 6 letter alpha codesX

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

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ITIS CodesX

The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) was established in the mid-1990�s as a cooperative project among several federal agencies to improve and expand upon taxonomic data (known as the NODC Taxonomic Code) maintained by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

To find the ITIS page for a bird species go to the ITIS web site advanced search and report page at http://www.itis.gov/advanced_search.html. You can enter the TSN or the common name of the bird. It will return the ITIS page for that bird. Another way to obtain the ITIS page is to use the Google search engine. Enter the string ITIS followed by the taxonomic ID, for example "ITIS 178041" will return the page for the Allen's Hummingbird.

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Parts of a Standing birdX
Head Feathers and MarkingsX
Parts of a Flying birdX