Wilson's Phalarope
Although the Wilson's Phalarope, Red Phalarope, and Red-necked Phalarope are all in the same family as shore-hugging sandpipers, they are so unusual that they have sometimes been considered a separate family.

All three species of phalarope forage while swimming, sometimes whirling in a circle to create a vortex that brings small invertebrates to the surface for easier capture. Wilson's Phalarope also relies on the standard sandpiper feeding behavior -- probing through the mud. But its probing is erratic and energetic in comparison to sandpipers.To catch prey, a Wilson's Phalarope will wade rapidly with its bill open in the water. It may also capture flying insects.

The phalarope genus name, Phalaropus, means "coot-footed" and was inspired by the phalarope's feet which are adapted for swimming. Two of the phalarope species winter at sea and have semipalmate (partially webbed) feet with lobed toes, while the more terrestrial Wilson's Phalarope has flanged toes.

But what really sets phalaropes apart is the reversal of gender roles from the typical avian pattern. Before the males show up at the breeding grounds each spring, female Wilson's Phalaropes arrive at shallow freshwater marshes and wet meadows from southern Yukon Territory southward to central Nevada and eastward to the Great Lakes. Aggressive females compete with courtship displays during which they stretch out their necks and puff their feathers. Once mated, they defend a small area around their males.
Wilson's Phalarope Range Map

Females lay eggs in shallow depressions that they usually scrape within 100 yards of the shoreline. The males complete the nest lining and a concealing canopy of grasses after the eggs are laid. Then the males settle into caring for the nestlings until they fledge.

As soon as the breeding season ends in July, the legs of adults change color from brownish-black to yellow. Females leave the breeding territories first, from early June to early July, followed by the males and, lastly, immature birds. Starting in August, adults molt into a drab winter plumage. The last migrants linger until as late as October.

The main migration passes west of the Mississippi River but a smaller number also migrates along the Atlantic Coast. Most Wilson's Phalaropes spend the winter in Bolivia, Chile, and the Argentina highlands along salty and alkaline lakes.

Description: Wilson's Phalarope has a short white supercilium or eyebrow stripe. Its underparts are white and its long thin bill is black. Males are about 25 percent smaller than females.

During the breeding season, adults have a black line through the eye below the supercilium that extends down the side of the neck, flaring at the shoulder and blending with chestnut coloring toward the front of the neck.

Females in breeding plumage are pale gray on the crown, back, wings, and tail. The appearance of males varies during this time. Some individuals are nearly as bright as a female but with darker crowns and more mottled backs. Others are dull-looking with a gray and white coat that is reminiscent of the winter plumage.

Nonbreeding birds have olive to yellow legs and plain gray plumage above. The stripe through the eye is still visible as a gray line below the white supercilium.


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