Illustration from National Geographic's Field Guide to the Birds of North America
Long-Billed Curlew
Numenius americanus americanus
Subspecies of Curlew
June 23, 1805, near Great Falls, Montana.
A large curlew, warm brown and buff below, with cinnamon wing linings, no head pattern, and very long, sickle-shaped bill. Length: 23 in (58 cm).
A clear curleee; a sharp whit-whit, whit, whit, whit, whit.
Breeds on plains and prairies; on migration frequents lake and river shores, mudflats, salt marshes, and sandy beaches.
Breeds from southern Canada to northern California, Utah, northern New Mexico, and Texas. Winters from California, Texas, Louisiana, South Carolina, and Florida southward.
Our largest shorebird, the "sicklebill" was once a plentiful game bird of the Great Plains and the formerly extensive prairies to the east.
