Upland Sandpiper
Upland Sandpiper has edged up: up 22% on the route-weighted index since 1968.
About the Upland Sandpiper
The Upland Sandpiper (Bartramia longicauda) is a North American member of the Sandpipers & Allies (Scolopacidae). In this analysis it is grouped with the grassland birds.
- Size
- 5–26 in long (13–66 cm) — a probing shorebird (typical for the family)
- Habitat
- Open grasslands, prairie, pasture and hayfields.
- Diet
- Seeds and insects gathered from grasses and the ground.
- Range
- Recorded on 856 Breeding Bird Survey routes across 30 states, most concentrated in the Eastern Tallgrass Prairie.
- Family
- Scolopacidae · Grassland birds
Notable Upland Sandpiper Trends
No notable trend signals for Upland Sandpiper. See the full index history below.
Upland Sandpiper Population Forecast
If the recent trend holds, Upland Sandpiper is projected to stay roughly flat through 2029, near 0.74 (95% range 0.52–0.97). A 5-year backtest shows a typical error of ±14.3%, with 100% of held-out values landing inside the 95% band.
| Year | Projected index | 95% low | 95% high |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 0.74 | 0.51 | 0.97 |
| 2026 | 0.74 | 0.51 | 0.97 |
| 2027 | 0.74 | 0.51 | 0.97 |
| 2028 | 0.74 | 0.52 | 0.97 |
| 2029 | 0.74 | 0.52 | 0.97 |
Where the Upland Sandpiper Is Detected
BBS routes recording Upland Sandpiper, sized by most recent count.
Upland Sandpiper Population Trend by State
| Alaska | -81% | 1984 | 13 |
| Colorado | -94% | 1972 | 16 |
| Illinois | -47% | 1968 | 51 |
| Indiana | -65% | 1969 | 18 |
| Iowa | +246% | 1969 | 38 |
| Kansas | -6% | 1969 | 65 |
| Maine | -96% | 1969 | 9 |
| Maryland | insufficient data | n/a | 8 |
| Massachusetts | insufficient data | n/a | 2 |
| Michigan | -64% | 1968 | 56 |
| Minnesota | +507% | 1969 | 52 |
| Missouri | -88% | 1969 | 35 |
| Montana | +937% | 1970 | 63 |
| Nebraska | +94% | 1969 | 71 |
| New Hampshire | insufficient data | n/a | 1 |
| New Jersey | insufficient data | n/a | 2 |
| New York | -96% | 1968 | 43 |
| North Dakota | +143% | 1969 | 50 |
| Ohio | -97% | 1968 | 24 |
| Oklahoma | +157% | 1969 | 37 |
| Oregon | insufficient data | n/a | 1 |
| Pennsylvania | -95% | 1968 | 17 |
| Rhode Island | insufficient data | n/a | 1 |
| South Dakota | +40% | 1969 | 55 |
| Texas | +99% | 1976 | 16 |
| Vermont | insufficient data | n/a | 5 |
| Virginia | insufficient data | n/a | 1 |
| West Virginia | insufficient data | n/a | 3 |
| Wisconsin | -96% | 1968 | 64 |
| Wyoming | +331% | 1980 | 39 |
Upland Sandpiper Population Trend by Region
Bird Conservation Regions are the ecological unit for trends.
| BCR 4 | -88% | 1984 | 11 |
| Northern Rockies | -81% | 1974 | 15 |
| Prairie Potholes | +20% | 1969 | 119 |
| Boreal Hardwood Transition | -72% | 1968 | 59 |
| Lower Great Lakes / St. Lawrence Plain | -93% | 1968 | 44 |
| Atlantic Northern Forest | -74% | 1968 | 16 |
| Badlands and Prairies | +35% | 1969 | 113 |
| Shortgrass Prairie | -69% | 1969 | 49 |
| Central Mixed Grass Prairie | +204% | 1969 | 98 |
| Oaks and Prairies | -71% | 1970 | 13 |
| Eastern Tallgrass Prairie | -50% | 1968 | 168 |
| Prairie Hardwood Transition | -96% | 1968 | 91 |
| Central Hardwoods | -28% | 1973 | 9 |
| Appalachian Mountains | -96% | 1968 | 30 |
| Piedmont | -79% | 1968 | 7 |
| New England / Mid-Atlantic Coast | -55% | 1974 | 4 |
Upland Sandpiper Conservation Status
Our route-weighted index shows it up about 22% since 1968. Grassland birds are North America's steepest-declining group, down roughly 50% since 1970 as prairie and pasture were lost.
Source: USGS North American Breeding Bird Survey, retrieved 2026-05-22. Trend is a route-weighted relative-abundance index, not an absolute population.