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Population Status and Ecology of North Pacific Shorebirds

Research on the population status and ecology of shorebirds in Alaska focuses on identifying critical phases of the annual cycle for these species. Because ninety percent of the migratory shorebird species in the Western Hemisphere have breeding populations in Alaska, our current research necessarily incorporates work that describes migratory routes and connections between Alaska and sites around the globe where these species stopover or spend the nonbreeding season. Such studies require large-scale, collaborative efforts that employ a variety of techniques to gain perspectives appropriate to the scale and range of these highly migratory species. Information from these studies is guiding conservation efforts and helping scientists and conservation groups to better understand the effects of global-scale threats to shorebirds, including habitat modification and degradation, climate change, and the spread of infectious diseases.

Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica) 

There are four species of godwits distributed around the world, three of which breed in Alaska: Bar-tailed, Hudsonian, and Marbled Godwits. Bar-tailed Godwits are considered a Bird of Conservation Concern by the US Fish and Wildlife Service due to their small population size, threats to their non-breeding grounds (especially at migratory stopover sites in the Yellow Sea), and their relatively restricted breeding distribution within the United States.

Additional articles and podcasts:

This Alaska-born bird flew 8,500 miles to Tasmania, and we’re still not totally sure how it did it, November 2022

750 miles per day for 11 days, no rest, November 2022

Podcast: From Alaska to New Zealand, the bar-tailed godwit, January 2022

Blown back to Alaska, bird perseveres, November 2021

Shorebirds depend on wee slivers of Alaska, November 2021

The bar-tailed godwit's nonstop to New Zealand, 2005

Bristle-thighed Curlew (Numenius tahitiensis) 

The Bristle-thighed Curlew breeds only at two disjunct locations in western Alaska, and has a broad, low-density distribution across atolls and islands in the Pacific Basin during the nonbreeding season.  Its adult population numbers about 7,000 individuals, making it the rarest of the New World curlews and godwits. Due to their small population and threats to their nonbreeding grounds related primarily to sea-level rise and invasive species, the Bristle-thighed Curlew is a listed as a Bird of Conservation Concern by the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Long-billed Curlew (Numenius americanus)

The Long-billed Curlew is the largest shorebird in North America. The species is considered a Bird of Conservation Concern by the US Fish and Wildlife Service due to the species' small population size, recent population declines, and threats to the species' breeding and non-breeding grounds.

Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus)

Whimbrels closely resemble Bristle-thighed Curlews. Whimbrels are widely distributed at high-latitude breeding sites around the world, but Alaska-breeding Whimbrels are restricted to sites within the Pacific Flyway. These long-distance migrants are distributed at wintering sites from California to southern Chile.