Calidris pugnax
Status: Rare casual spring and fall migrant central and east.
Documentation: Photograph: 19 Apr 1994 Phelps Co (Gubanyi 1996b).
Taxonomy: No subspecies are recognized.
Philomachus has been merged into Calidris, based on Gibson & Baker (2012).
Spring: There are five documented records, including a red-maned male at Sacramento-Wilcox WMA, Phelps Co and a black-maned male at Funk WPA, Phelps Co:
26 Mar 2005 basic, probable male, Eckhardt WPA, Clay Co (Brogie 2006)
9 Apr 1998 female northeast Antelope Co (Brogie 1999)
19 Apr 1994 Sacramento-Wilcox WMA (Gubanyi 1996b)
4 May 2002 female Branched Oak Lake, Lancaster Co (Brogie 2003)
24 May 1997 Funk WPA, Phelps Co (Brogie 1998).
Fall: There are two documented records, both of juvenile males in flooded fields:
21-22 Sep 1993 near Axtell, Kearney Co (Gubanyi 1996a).
27 Sep 1998 juvenile Kirkpatrick Basin North WMA, York Co (Jorgensen 2004; Brogie 1999).
Comments: Ruffs may appear anywhere other shorebirds are concentrated. Most of the many North American records are for the eastern half of the US and along the Pacific Coast, with fewest on the Great Plains, where there are only around 35 reports in all for North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma (eBird.org, accessed Oct 2023). Most records from neighboring states are in the periods late Apr-early May and late Jul through mid-Sep, although overall spring dates are 31 Mar-1 Jun, as well as a specimen from Kansas 21 Jun 1986, and fall dates 6 Jul-13 Nov.
This species is a native of Eurasia, but the numbers occurring in North American strongly suggest that it is established and breeding. It was suggested some time ago (Peakall 1965) that the occurrence of juveniles in North America in fall either indicates breeding or an unlikely North Atlantic crossing against prevailing winds – the only breeding record to date, however, is from Alaska.
Images
Abbreviations
WMA: Wildlife Management Area (State)
WPA: Waterfowl Production Area (Federal)
Literature Cited
Brogie, M.A. 1998. 1997 (Ninth) Report of the NOU Records Committee. NBR 66: 147-159.
Brogie, M.A. 1999. 1998 (Tenth) Report of the NOU Records Committee. NBR 67: 141-152.
Brogie, M.A. 2003. 2002 (14th) Report of the NOU Records Committee. NBR 71: 136-142.
Brogie, M.A. 2006. 2005 (17th) Report of the NOU Records Committee. NBR 74: 69-74.
Gibson, R., and A. Baker. 2012. Multiple gene sequences resolve phylogenetic relationships in the shorebird suborder Scolopaci (Aves: Charadriiformes). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 64: 66-72.
Gubanyi, J.G. 1996a. 1992, 1993 (Fifth) Report of the NOU Records Committee. NBR 64: 30-35.
Gubanyi, J.G. 1996b. 1994 (Sixth) Report of the NOU Records Committee. NBR 64: 38-42.
Jorgensen, J.G. 2004. An overview of shorebird migration in the eastern Rainwater Basin, Nebraska. Nebraska Ornithologists’ Union Occasional Paper No. 8. Nebraska Ornithologists’ Union, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA.
Peakall, D.B. 1965. The status of the Ruff in North America. Wilson Bulletin 77: 294-296.
Recommended Citation
Silcock, W.R., and J.G. Jorgensen. 2023. Ruff (Calidris pugnax). In Birds of Nebraska — Online. www.BirdsofNebraska.org
Birds of Nebraska – Online
Updated 10 Oct 2023