Seeing Sandpipers

If my knowledge of sandpipers is a little patchy, especially before reading Mr. Beehler's Flight of the Godwit, it's not entirely without reason.  Most of my animal knowledge is driven by my observations and experiences working with wildlife in zoos, as well as my private reading and research - and, for reasons which are understandable, I expend most of that reading and research on animals that I work with in zoos, so I can care for them better.  Sandpipers have largely been off my radar, because as a group, they aren't super well-represented in zoos.

Native bird exhibits in the United States tend to be dominated by two groups of birds - waterfowl (which have a strong private hobby behind them, and breed very well) and raptors (especially beloved of the public).  A smattering of larger wading birds - pelicans, ibises, herons - and that's often it.  A visitor from another country could visit a US zoo and come to the conclusion that those were the only birds here... provided they never looked up when walking from exhibit to exhibit.  There's a few localized species which have some special visitor appeal, such as roadrunners in the west and puffins on the northern coasts.  Songbirds are starting to make a push for a seat at the table, spearheaded by the efforts of a few zoos, but largely that's it.  

Sandpipers and other shorebirds, when they are present, are usually only seen as the odd non-releasable rehab bird... and you can't really plan exhibits around the availability of an unpredictable supply of rehab birds, many with old injuries that explain why they can't be back in the wild.

Which is strange to me, in a way, because the two actual shorebird-specialist exhibits that I've seen are really quite excellent.  There is the shorebird aviary at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and the relatively new Delaware Bay habitat in the Bird House of the Smithsonian National Zoo.  Both feature a diverse array of native species in attractive habitats.  Birds are elevated to eyelevel with visitors, so it's easier to appreciate their patterning, the differences in their size and shape, and their behavior as they skitter about, much as they would on the beaches where many visitors at either coastal facility would see them.

Ironically, even though they aren't exhibited very often, some zoos are very active in the conservation of their local shorebirds.  Several zoos, for example, are active in efforts to conserve the piping plovers of the Great Lakes.  To be fair, I did see an exhibit of this species - well-designed to highlight the conservation story - the McCormick Bird House at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, but so many zoos that are involved in this project don't feature the species.  They may have a sign somewhere (and we all know everyone reads the signs...) or make a facebook post now and then, but that's a far cry from actual showing people the animal that they are saving and helping visitors form an in-person appreciation.

One could certainly make an argument that many visitors live in coastal areas, and so sandpipers can readily be seen in the wild, and that some species are still fairly abundant.  Perhaps, it could be said, they aren't a top priority for zoos... and perhaps they aren't.  Still, like many birds, their numbers are declining due to a variety of anthropogenic factors... and that's not also considering the educational potential for introducing visitors to one of the most extraordinary families of birds and some of the greatest travelers in the animal kingdom.