The White-rumped Sandpiper breeds across the Canadian Arctic and winters in southern South America. During southward migration, the White-rumped Sandpiper passes through eastern North America. Surveys at stopover sites in this area suggest there has been little change in abundance of the species relative to about 1970, although these results have poor precision. Nevertheless, the species' behaviour of travelling long distances between a restricted set of staging sites means that they are susceptible to disturbance and habitat change at these key sites. With a large percentage of the global breeding population, Canada's responsibility for the species is very high. This species has been identified as a priority for conservation and/or stewardship in one or more Bird Conservation Region Strategies in Canada.
The White-rumped Sandpiper undertakes extremely long migrations, and like other shorebirds, depends on good foraging conditions at stopover sites to fuel these migrations. However, it often relies on habitats far removed from the coast, exposing this species to a different suite of threats than obligate-coastal shorebirds. Over 1.6 million birds have been estimated to pass through the Prairie Potholes region in the United States (Skagen et al. 2008); wetland loss and water level fluctuations in interior North America are detrimental to the species during northward migration (e.g., Parmelee 1992a). In the Arctic, climate change is predicted to reduce the distribution of climatically suitable breeding conditions by 90% by 2070 (Wauchope et al. 2016). Despite these threats, however, the species' current status appears secure.
Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:
Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.
