Image by Cheri Hollis

This summer, the SCCF shorebird team re-sighted a sanderling (Caladris alba) known as 4MC that was originally banded in Ica, Peru, in 2018.

This is the second time SCCF has observed the bird on Sanibel, the first being in 2022.

4MC was likely stopping by on the way to its wintering grounds in Peru, refueling during its long migration from arctic Canada. Sanderlings’ migrations can be anywhere from 1,800 to over 6,000 miles, making stopover sites like Sanibel crucially important habitats.

“Just like humans on a long road trip, migratory shorebirds need to stop once in a while to refuel their energy reserves,” said SCCF Shorebird Biologist Audrey Albrecht. “We also have resident wintering sanderlings on Sanibel that stop their migration route once reaching our shores.”

4MC was banded by researchers at the Paracas Shorebird Project, which has been banding shorebirds at the Paracas National Reserve in Peru for the past eight years. The project has banded thousands of shorebirds, including sanderlings, semipalmated sandpipers (Calidris pusilla), and semipalmated plovers (Charadrius semipalmatus), which can all be found in southwest Florida.

Sharing our re-sightings with the Paracas Shorebird Project helps give them insight into the migration patterns of individual banded birds.