Short-billed dowitchers (Limnodromus griseus) are small chunky shorebirds that feed by rapidly inserting their long bills in mudflats, sewing-machine style, to feed on aquatic invertebrates. There are both long-billed and short-billed dowitchers, with the distinction not always that clear in the field. Both long-billed and short-billed dowitchers have long bills, so other field marks are usually used to distinguish them.
Short-Billed Dowtchers at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge
I have seen the most short-billed dowitchers on the East Pond at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, and have had the best opportunity to film them there. On August 16, 2025, I got to see several of these “sewing machines” on the mudflats and in the shallow water.
Short-billed dowitcher, Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, East Pond, August 16, 2025
