Shorebirds

Widespread declines with accelerating losses

A recent study based on long-term participatory science data showed definitive negative population trends beyond confidence intervals for 19 of 28 shorebird species since 1980—with 18 shorebird species showing accelerated loss rates in recent years.

Almost three-quarters of those declining shorebird species are suffering continued losses despite recent conservation efforts. Focused research is needed to identify causes of the declines, and conservation measures must be ramped up to protect critical shorebird habitats.

Shorebirds have had a 33% decline since 1980. Of 28 species, 19 are declining and 9 are stable.
No increasing species. Overall shorebirds trend from 2022 State of the Birds report; numbers of declining/stable species from Smith, P.A., et al. 2023. Accelerating Declines of North America’s Shorebirds Signal the Need for Urgent Conservation Action. Ornithological Applications. Vol. 125, Issue 2. doi: 10.1093/ornithapp/duad003

Migration Tracking of Satellite-Tagged Whimbrels

Map of the Americas with lines showing the migration routes of Whimbrels. Labels: Canada, South America, North Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean, North Pacific Ocean.
Whimbrel by Simon Villeneuve / Macaulay Library.

  • The Most Imperiled Birds

    Shorebirds have the most Tipping Point species (19) of any group of birds in North America. Rates of shorebird declines exceed thresholds for listing as vulnerable/endangered under national and international conservation standards. Research on limiting factors and conservation actions is urgently needed to reverse declines.

  • Biggest Losses at Coastal Sites

    Surveys show steep shorebird declines at migratory staging sites along the Atlantic Coast from North Carolina to Nova Scotia, as well as the Gulf Coast. Conservation actions to restore these critical coastal habitats will protect shorebirds, people, and property from storms, flooding, and sea level rise.

  • Targeted Conservation Needed at Key Sites

    Efforts to protect critical shorebird sites, like the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network and Important Bird Areas program, need to be strengthened via private and public investments. Increased protections are also needed at places where shorebirds are hunted on their wintering grounds.

Bringing Back Oystercatchers

Fifteen years ago American Oystercatcher was a shorebird in serious decline along the Atlantic Coast. In 2009 the American Oystercatcher Recovery Initiative launched as a new approach to conservation that fundamentally changed the outlook for oystercatchers.

In partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Manomet Conservation Sciences led the initiative of state, federal, and private groups to coordinate funding and management strategies across 16 states all along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.

By changing the dynamic from isolated projects to a coordinated multi-state oystercatcher effort, the recovery initiative stopped declines and ignited a 43% increase in the regional breeding population for American Oystercatchers. Forecasts predict continued, strong gains well into the next decade.

A basic graph showing how American Oystercatcher numbers declined from 2003 to 2009, and then started increasing.
American Oystercatchers were in serious decline until the American Oystercatcher Recovery Initiative launched in 2009. By 2023, the number of birds was estimated at more than 14,000. American Oystercatcher by Dorian Anderson / Macaulay Library.
List of Obligate Shorebird Species

American Golden Plover
American Oystercatcher
American Woodcock
Baird’s Sandpiper
Black-bellied Plover
Black-necked Stilt
Black Oystercatcher
Black Turnstone
Buff-breasted Sandpiper
Dunlin
Greater Yellowlegs
Hudsonian Godwit
Killdeer
Least Sandpiper
Lesser Yellowlegs
Long-billed Curlew
Long-billed Dowitcher
Marbled Godwit
Mountain Plover
Pacific Golden-Plover
Pectoral Sandpiper
Purple Sandpiper
Red Knot
Rock Sandpiper
Ruddy Turnstone
Sanderling
Semipalmated Plover
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Short-billed Dowitcher
Snowy Plover
Solitary Sandpiper
Spotted Sandpiper
Stilt Sandpiper
Surfbird
Upland Sandpiper
Wandering Tattler
Western Sandpiper
Whimbrel
White-rumped Sandpiper
Willet
Wilson’s Phalarope
Wilson’s Plover
Wilson’s Snipe