The Critically Endangered Spoon-billed Sandpiper has been seen recently in India.
Discovered on 29 March 2026 at Patibunia Beach in West Bengal, the first sandpiper represented only the third-ever Indian record of the extremely rare shorebird.
The previous record, which was made in same area south of Kolkata, occurred in April 2018. The only other confirmed Indian record came from Tamil Nadu as long ago as February 1981.
Thrilling discovery
The bird was found and photographed by Soumya Aon, Kaustav Khan and Sandip Das, who had been searching the area in hope of encountering the mega shorebird.
Writing on their eBird checklist, the lucky observers said: “We have been visiting the area surrounding Frazergunj for over a decade, ever since this species was recorded at nearby Kargil Beach in April 2018. We return every year during this window in hopes of a sighting.
“Finally, after a rigorous search, our luck held; we had a brief but incredible encounter with the ‘Spoony’, alongside plenty of other fascinating wader activity. Found roosting with Red-necked Stints and Tibetan Sand Plovers. Even with a careful approach, the bird remained very shy and took flight shortly after we spotted it.”
Multiples ‘Spoonies’
But the story didn’t end there. Extraordinarily, over the following days, at least three different Spoon-billed Sandpipers were observed in the area.
One of these proved to be a leg-flagged individual that was tagged as a wild chick in Chukotka, Russia, on 6 July 2025.
Discussions are now taking place as to whether this area of West Bengal might in fact be a staging site for the Critically Endangered wader.
