WatchList Species Account for Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa)

Qualifies for the list as a Rare Yellow List Species

Photo: © clipart.com

The great majority of Marbled Godwits breed in the northern grasslands of the U.S. from Montana east to northwestern Minnesota and southern Canada from Alberta to Manitoba, with a small population along the southern shore of Hudson Bay and another small population on the Alaska Peninsula. Unlike other shorebirds, it ranges in winter only as far as Central America, while many spend the nonbreeding season on the coast from North Carolina to Florida, on the Gulf Coast, and on the Pacific Coast in the greatest numbers from central California to Mexico, with a few at inland locations in California, such as the Sacramento Valley and the Salton Sea, and scattered localities in British Columbia, Washington and Oregon.

As a large shorebird, many fell victim to market hunters at the turn of the 20th Century; before 1900 its breeding range included Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska, and a larger part of Minnesota. Probably because its habitat has been turned to cropland since that time, it has not repopulated its former range. Breeding habitat is a complex of native grassland and ephemeral to semipermanent wetlands. Greatest densities of territorial males in North Dakota were in grazed habitats. The James Bay population is found mainly in wet tundra and open taiga habitats, while that in Alaska is on marsh and very wet bog habitats. In winter it frequents coastal mudflats adjoinging meadows, sandy beaches, and sandflats.

Total population is estimated at 140,000-200,000 individuals. During the period 1966-1996 mumbers increased in the U.S. slightly but significantly while remaining the same in Canada. The main threat to the Whimbrel—as to other grassland birds—is the fact that North American and indeed worldwide grasslands have decreased hugely; it is estimated that in North American less than 1% are intact in some areas. Similarly, many coastal staging sites in California have been lost or degraded in the last century or more. Conservation plans for the species include protecting contiguous blocks of native grassland more than 1 km2 with a complex of different wetland types managed through use of rotational grazing and not disturbed by energy exploration, and protect staging and wintering sites along the coast.