Upland Sandpiper

Bartramia longicauda

The Upland Sandpiper, though technically a ‘shorebird’, is more closely associated with dry grasslands. Most of these birds breed in grassy prairies of south-central Canada, the upper Mississippi Valley, and the Great Lakes region. Another breeding population prefers the interiors of Alaska, Yukon and Northwest Territories of Canada. Even on their winter grounds, these birds prefer grass plains.

Despite the wide separation between breeding centers, today’s science regards the Upland Sandpiper as monotypic (i.e. no subspecies).

Until my 16,000-mile expedition through western North America in 2022, I’d experienced but one meeting with these birds. While I was passing through Delta Junction in central Alaska, I veered from the highway to explore an area referred to as the Delta Agricultural Project. I enjoyed a brief, but close encounter with a bird only a few feet from where I stopped my car to listen for birds. During my 2022 adventure, I enjoyed meeting dozens of these enigmatic shorebirds in the Sandhills of Nebraska.

19 Photos

Upland Sandpiper - Bartramia longicauda — **Upland Sandpiper**
*(Bartramia longicauda)*

**Description:**
(Bartramia longicauda) Part of the collection at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology in Camarillo, California USA 2011-11-01.
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**Date Taken:** 2011:11:01 12:48

**Location:**

W F V Z
Camarillo, California
United States
124.68 ft above sea level

**Camera Information:**
NIKON D3X, 105 mm, f/8.0, 1/5

**File Name:** D3X4460-UplandSandPiper

© 2011 Jack Daynes, shadeTree Imaging

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Pin It — **Upland Sandpiper**
*(Bartramia longicauda)*

**Description:**
(Bartramia longicauda) Part of the collection at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology in Camarillo, California USA 2011-11-01.
Read More

**Date Taken:** 2011:11:01 12:48

**Location:**

W F V Z
Camarillo, California
United States
124.68 ft above sea level

**Camera Information:**
NIKON D3X, 105 mm, f/8.0, 1/5

**File Name:** D3X4460-UplandSandPiper

© 2011 Jack Daynes, shadeTree Imaging

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Upland Sandpiper

Bartramia longicauda

(Bartramia longicauda) Part of the collection at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology in Camarillo, California USA 2011-11-01.

Upland Sandpiper

Bartramia longicauda

(Bartramia longicauda) Part of the collection at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology in Camarillo, California USA 2011-11-01.

Upland Sandpiper

Bartramia longicauda

(Bartramia longicauda) Part of the collection at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology in Camarillo, California USA 2011-11-01.

Upland Sandpiper

Bartramia longicauda

Delta Agricultural Project, Delta Junction, Alaska.

Upland Sandpiper

Bartramia longicauda

Delta Agricultural Project, Delta Junction, Alaska.

Upland Sandpiper

Bartramia longicauda

Upland Sandpipers were high on my wish-list for this trip. And these birds were putting on quite a show. I left the main highway to follow a narrow ranch road that penetrated the heart of Nebraska’s Sandhills. Seneca Road provided some of my favorite bird encounters in a while.