Species BirdsWillet

Willet

Tringa semipalmata

CommonBird
Illustration of Willet (Tringa semipalmata)

The Willet is a large, stocky shorebird that appears plain and gray at rest but explodes into a striking black-and-white wing pattern when it takes flight, accompanied by a piercing 'pill-will-willet' call. The eastern and western subspecies are sometimes considered separate species. It is common on Atlantic and Gulf Coast beaches year-round and breeds on interior prairies in the West.

Habitat
Beaches, mudflats, coastal marshes, and prairie wetlands
Diet
Aquatic invertebrates, crabs, and small fish
How common
Common

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