Species · BBS 2025 Release · 1966–2024
Black Turnstone
Black Turnstone has no long-term trend on record.
n/aSince n/a
5Routes
15Years Surveyed
About the Black Turnstone
The Black Turnstone (Arenaria melanocephala) is a North American member of the Sandpipers & Allies (Scolopacidae). In this analysis it is grouped with the shorebirds.
- Size
- 5–26 in long (13–66 cm) — a probing shorebird (typical for the family)
- Habitat
- Shorelines, mudflats, beaches, flooded fields and wet meadows.
- Diet
- Invertebrates probed or picked from mud, sand and shallow water.
- Range
- Recorded on 5 Breeding Bird Survey routes across 1 state, most concentrated in the BCR 2.
- Family
- Scolopacidae · Shorebirds
Notable Black Turnstone Trends
No notable trend signals for Black Turnstone. See the full index history below.
Where the Black Turnstone Is Detected
BBS routes recording Black Turnstone, sized by most recent count.
Black Turnstone Population Trend by State
| Alaska | +6% | 1997 | 5 |
Black Turnstone Population Trend by Region
Bird Conservation Regions are the ecological unit for trends.
| BCR 2 | +28% | 1997 | 5 |
Black Turnstone Conservation Status
Many shorebirds have declined steeply, reflecting pressure on the coastal and wetland stopovers they depend on.
Source: USGS North American Breeding Bird Survey, retrieved 2026-05-22. Trend is a route-weighted relative-abundance index, not an absolute population.