Hudsonian godwit

(Limosa haemastica)

Hudsonian godwit

Hudsonian godwit 1920 1280 AMP Argentina

© Guillermo Harris

The Hudsonian godwit (Limosa haemastica) is a migratory shorebird that breeds in Canada and Alaska during the boreal summer and then migrates south in early autumn to its wintering habitats in the southernmost region of the Western Hemisphere. Between September and April, this species can be found in wetlands—such as estuaries, marshes, and lagoons—along the Argentine coast, using these areas for feeding and wintering. Its range extends from the Province of Buenos Aires to Tierra del Fuego, with the primary concentration area during the non-breeding season located in Tierra del Fuego. Major threats to this species, as well as other shorebirds, include habitat loss and degradation, environmental pollution, human disturbances, and climate change.

Species status tables, by year.

Select the year to display the status tables.

  • CITATION
    CONSERVATION STATUS (IUCN criteria)
    Global Least Concern, 2016 1
    Regional – Patagonian Sea Not Evaluated
    Argentina Least Concern, 2015 2
    POPULATION SIZE (Individuals)
    Global Unknow 1
    Argentina (without Islas Malvinas) 26557 3,4,5
    Isla Malvinas Absent
    South Atlantic Islands (South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands) Absent
    POPULATION TREND
    Global Decreasing 1
    Argentina (without Islas Malvinas)
    Isla Malvinas Absent
    South Atlantic Islands (South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands) Absent
    CURRENT SITUATION IN ARGENTINA
    Total Number of Registered Stopover Sites in Argentina 14 3,4,5
    Number of Protected Stopover Sites in Argentina 12 3 to 6
    Number of Stopover Sites with Increasing Population Trends 0
    Number of Stopover Sites with Decreasing Population Trends 0
    Number of Stopover Sites with Stable Population Trends 0
    Number of Stopover Sites with Unknown Population Trends 14

Marine Protected Areas with the presence of the species

  • Costa Atlántica Tierra del Fuego Provincial Nature Reserve
  • Aves Migratorias Provincial Reserve
  • Mar Chiquita Wildlife Refuge
  • Rincón de Ajó Defined Purpose Nature Reserve
  • Ría Deseado Provincial Nature Reserve
  • Patagonia Austral Interjurisdictional Coastal Marine Park
  • Península Valdés Protected Natural Area
  • Bahía de San Antonio Protected Natural Area
  • Bahía Blanca, Bahía Falsa y Bahía Verde Provincial Multiple Use Nature Reserve
  • Río Gallegos Urban Coastal Reserve

Marine areas of intensive use by the species

  • Coastal wetlands along the Atlantic coast. They spend the austral summer (boreal winter) mainly in Tierra del Fuego (both in Argentina and Chile) and use various stopover sites during migrations to and from North America, where they breed.
  1. BirdLife International. 2016. Limosa haemastica. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T22693154A93386036. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22693154A93386036.en 
  2. Ministerio de Ambiente y Desarrollo Sustentable y Aves Argentina. (2017). Categorización de las Aves de la Argentina (2015). Informe del Ministerio de Ambiente y Desarrollo Sustentable de la Nación y de Aves Argentinas, edición electrónica. Buenos Aires, Argentina. 
  3. Senner, N. (2008). The status and conservation of Hudsonian godwits (Limosa haemastica) during the non-breeding season. Ornitologia Neotropical 19, 623–631. 
  4. Harrington, B., Picone, C., Resende, S., Leeuwenberg, F. (1993). Hudsonian Godwit Limosa haemastica migration in southern Argentina. Wader Study Group Bulletin 67, 41–44. 
  5. Lizarralde, Z., Ferrari, S., Pittaluga, S., Albrieu, C. (2010). Seasonal abundance and trophic ecology of the hudsonian godwit (Limosa haemastica) at Río Gallegos estuary (Patagonia, Argentina). Ornitología Neotropical 21, 283–294. 
  6. WCS Argentina Database – Marine Program

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