Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus), Broadway Road and Jackrabbit Trail (195th Avenue) dairy slop ponds, Maricopa County

This Whimbrel was spotted by Kurt Radamaker, John Jung, and Larry Langstaff and photographed on 28 August 2010 by Larry Langstaff.

Whimbrels are occasionally seen during migration in Maricopa County, with three photographed at Veteran's Oasis Park in Chandler in May, 2009, and one photographed in Arlington in April, 2006. It is a regular migrant in the Lower Colorado River valley and is seen in the Wilcox ponds somewhat regularly. This individual was the 20th shorebird species seen at the tail-end of the AZFO Shorebird workshop led by Troy Corman and Kurt Rakamaker.

The downward drooping bill, shorter than the bill of Long-billed Curlew, is distinctive, as are the stripes on the head. This Whimbrel is in juvenile plumage, distinguished from the adult by the sharp contrasting dark and light scapulars.

28 August 2010, photo by Larry Langstaff