Asian Dowitcher

Asian Dowitcher
This species is defined as a Review Species . Please submit your records of this species via our record submission page .

Scientific Name: Limnodromus semipalmatus

Malay Name: Kedidi-Tetiruk Asia

Chinese Name: 半蹼鹬

Range: Breeds in southern Siberia, northern China and Mongolia; winters from east India through southeast Asia to northern and eastern Australia. Locally, typically recorded on passage.

Taxonomy: Monotypic.

Size: 34-36 cm

Identification: In breeding plumage, shows orange-red head, breast, and upper belly, and orange-fringed upperpart feathers. Non-breeding-plumaged individuals (typically recorded in Singapore) may be confused with Black- and Bar-tailed Godwit, but can be differentiated from both these species by combination of mostly dark, straight, heavy-tipped bill, mostly brown rump and thinly-barred uppertail in flight.

Similar looking species: Black-tailed Godwit, Bar-tailed Godwit

Habitat: Coastal mudflats and occasionally inland freshwater areas.

Behaviour/Ecology: When feeding, probes deeply into soil; usually associates with similar-sized and larger waders.

Local Status: Very rare migrant

Conservation Status: Near Threatened (BirdLife International 2016)

Featured reports: Aug 2022, Sep 2023, Aug 2024

Past records in our database:

Showing only accepted records. Note that records currently under review are also not displayed, and the list may not be a full list of records of this species in Singapore. For more details, check the database here.

Migrant bar chart (see more bar charts):

Asian Dowitcher Limnodromus semipalmatus
Average number of individuals by week based on Singapore Bird Database data, Jul 2014 to Jun 2024 (all records)
Peak weeks Sep 03-Sep 09, Sep 10-Sep 16
Early date 08 Aug 2024
Late date 14 Apr 2008
Sightings in the last 10 years of this increasingly rare migrant have all been in the months of August, September, and October.
Asian Dowitcher at SBWR. Photo Credit: Francis Yap
Asian Dowitcher at SBWR. Photo Credit: Francis Yap
Asian Dowitcher at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve. Photo credit: Francis Yap
Asian Dowitcher at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve. Photo credit: Francis Yap
Asian Dowitcher at SBWR. Photo Credit: Francis Yap
Asian Dowitcher at SBWR. Photo Credit: Francis Yap

External Links:

Conservation Status: IUCN Red List Page

Sound Recordings: xeno-canto Link

Wikipedia Entry: Wikipedia Link

eBird Species page: eBird (Asian Dowitcher)

References:

BirdLife International. (2016). Limnodromus semipalmatus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22693351A93397892.en. Accessed on 1 January 2023

Robson, C. (2014). Field guide to the birds of South-East Asia (Second Edition). Bloomsbury Publishing, London.

Van Gils, J., Wiersma, P., and Kirwan, G. M. (2020). Asian Dowitcher (Limnodromus semipalmatus), version 1.0. In del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D. A., & de Juana, E. (Eds.), Birds of the World. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.asidow1.01

RECOMMENDED CITATION

Bird Society of Singapore. (n.d.). Asian Dowitcher. Retrieved on June 6, 2025 from https://singaporebirds.com/species/asian-dowitcher.

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