1. This module covers the following orders: CHARADRIIFORMES — Shorebirds, Gulls, & Allies

2. Shorebirds, gulls & allies Atlantic Puffin

3. Range: worldwide Morphology/ecology: diverse group of waterbirds, or secondarily derived landbirds; long pointed wings; waders, swimmers & aerial divers Behavior: mainly ground or cliff nesters; most monogamous biparental care, but interesting diversity of mating system and parental care patterns in sandpiper family. Taxonomic notes: sandgrouse now placed in their own order *ORDER CHARADRIIFORMES — Shorebirds, Gulls, & Allies — 17 families; 360 species

4. Important families: *Scolopacidae: sandpipers, phalaropes, snipe (dig for small invertebrates in mud) *Haematopodidae: oystercatchers (eat intertidal mollusks) *Recurvirostridae: avocets, stilts (small aquatic invertebrates) *Charadriidae: plovers (often terrestrial) *Laridae: gulls, terns (fish eaters, omnivores) *Stercorariidae: jaegers, skuas (predators, kleptoparasites (pirates)) *Rynchopidae: skimmers (slice water with knife-like beak to catch fish) *Alcidae: auks, puffins (swim underwater with wings to get fish)

5. Family Scolopacidae: sandpipers, phalaropes, snipes Stilt Sandpiper, Canadian arctic -Small to medium sized shorebirds, distinguished from plovers by short, elevated hind toe -Forage invertebrates from the ground, often using long, thin bills -Generally found in large flocks when not breeding -most nest in Arctic tundra -Precocial young

6. Baird ’ s Sandpiper, Canadian arctic

8. Sanderling baby, Canadian arctic

9. sandpipers in winter: social & subtle

10. Male Pectoral Sandpiper courtship display

11. Family Scolopacidae shows great variation in mating system. Phalaropes have role reversal (only males care for chicks) and females compete for males male Red Phalarope with chick

12. Red Phalaropes, arctic: two females competing for a male (dull bird)

13. White-rumped Sandpiper, Canadian arctic MATING SYSTEM = POLYGYNY

14. Buff-breasted Sandpiper MATING SYSTEM = LEKKING Photo Subhankar Banerjee Photo Brian Zwiebel

15. Family Haematopodidae: oystercatchers Black Oystercatcher, BC -Found mainly in rocky coasts or tidal flats -Beak especially adapted for opening bivalve shells

16. Family Recurvirostridae: avocets Red-necked Avocet, Australia -Thin, tall shorebirds -Stilts have straight bills -Avocet bills curve up

17. Family Charadriidae: plovers Southern Lapwing, Argentina

18. American Golden Plover, Canadian arctic -Superficially similar to sandpipers -Relatively short bills -Build cryptic nests in open habitat -Precocial young also cryptic

19. Family Laridae: gulls terns & skimmers Glaucous-winged Gull, B.C. -Small to medium waterbirds with diverse foraging habits. Occur in both ocean and inland habitats -Gulls particularly omnivorous -Terns are well-known as long-distance migrants

20. Mew Gull Herring Gull Gull species can differ in iris and eye ring color Both photos Art Morris

21. Common Tern, Quebec

22. Courtship feeding in Royal Terns, Mexico

23. Black Skimmer, photo Ian Parker Skimmers catch fish by trolling with knife-like lower manible in water and then snap shut when encounter a fish

24. Family Stercorariidae: jaegers & skuas Long-tailed Jaeger Canadian arctic fast flying predators & kleptoparasites (steal food) breed in polar regions

25. Family Alcidae: auks & puffins Pigeon Guillemot, B.C. -Highly specialized underwater hunters -“ fly ” underwater like penguins -Most nest colonially on cliff edges (notable exceptions: murrelets)

26. Thick-billed Murres Canadian arctic

28. Chick ready to fledge

29. murre chicks jump off 1000 foot cliffs at this age. Note that secondaries (glide) but not primaries (thrust) have grown

30. Convergent evolution: swimming seabirds (P & L p. 30) Charadriiformes (Dovekie) Procellariformes (Diving Petrel)