page_title: Long-billed curlew
section_title: Breeding
hierarchical_section_title: Long-billed curlew / Breeding
caption_attribution_description: Spring is in the air. Long-billed Curlews (Numenius americanus) courting on Morro Strand State Beach. 40D and 100-400L hand held.
context_page_description: The long-billed curlew is a large North American shorebird of the family Scolopacidae. This species was also called "sicklebird" and the "candlestick bird". The species breeds in central and western North America, migrating southward and coastward for the winter.
context_section_description: The breeding habitat is grasslands in west-central North America. The species displays an elaborate courtship dance, with fast and looping display flights also being common. A small hollow is lined with various weeds and grasses to serve as the nest. The species is a determinant layer, a characteristic of shorebirds, laying four eggs, which vary in hue from white to olive. Long-billed curlew young are precocial, the chicks leaving the nest soon after hatching. Though both parents look after the young, females usually abandon the brood to the male 1–3 weeks after hatching and depart for winter grounds. Adults whose nest fails often depart immediately (or nearly so) for winter grounds.
caption: Long-billed curlews courting
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