Photography by Mark Miller

Desert Oasis Insider · Bird field guide

Willet

Tringa semipalmata

Plain gray-brown at rest, then dramatic black-and-white wings when it takes flight.

Wetlands & shores

View photograph Get to know this bird

Bird group: Shorebirds & wading birds
Where to look: Shorelines & wetland margins
Explore the region: Coachella Valley bird guide

What to notice

Plain gray-brown at rest, then dramatic black-and-white wings when it takes flight.

Where to look

Shorelines & wetland margins

When to look

In the Coachella Valley, Willets are most often seen during migration, particularly around the Salton Sea and other large inland bodies of water, where they stop to rest and feed.

Next time you are outside

Plain gray-brown at rest, then dramatic black-and-white wings when it takes flight.

Habitat guidance is not a guaranteed sighting. Photographs may have been taken outside the valley.

Original photography

Through the lens.

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This is a regional bird guide; photographs may also come from places beyond the valley. Locations are noted when available.

Identification & natural history

Know what to notice.

A type of large shorebird in the sandpiper family.

How to Recognize Them

Size & Shape: Larger and stockier than many sandpipers, with long gray legs and a straight, sturdy black bill.
Plumage: In winter (as shown here), they have a plain grayish-brown coloration overall. Their summer breeding plumage is more mottled and patterned.
Key Feature: When they spread their wings, they reveal a striking black-and-white wing pattern, which is their most distinctive field mark.

Behavior

Willets forage in the intertidal zone, probing the wet sand with their bills for invertebrates like crabs, worms, and small mollusks.
They often wade calmly in the shallows but can be pretty vocal, giving loud, ringing calls when disturbed.

Range & Seasonal Presence

Breeding: Inland wetlands and grasslands in the northern U.S. and Canada.
Wintering: Along both coasts of North America, including California.
In the Coachella Valley, Willets are most often seen during migration, particularly around the Salton Sea and other large inland bodies of water, where they stop to rest and feed.

Ecological Role

Willets play a vital role in controlling populations of small crustaceans and insects in mudflats and estuaries. They also serve as indicators of wetland health, since they depend on clean, intact shoreline habitats.