Western sandpiper diet composition in south San Francisco Bay, CA

Diet composition can be influenced by age- and sex-related factors including an individual’s morphology, social status, and acquired skills; however, specialization may only be necessary when competition is intensified by high population densities or increased energetic demands. The western sandpiper is a small (22-35 grams) migratory shorebird that exhibits female-biased sexual size dimorphism with a 5 percent greater body size and a 15 percent longer bill in females compared to males. It is considered a generalist with a diverse diet that includes benthic invertebrates and biofilm – a thin layer of microphytobenthos, bacteria, and detritus encased in a polysaccharide-rich matrix of extracellular polymeric substances that forms on [...]