sanderling

American  

[san-der-ling] / ˈsæn dər lɪŋ /

noun

1. a common, small sandpiper, Calidris alba, inhabiting sandy beaches.

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sanderling British  

/ ˈsændəlɪŋ /

noun

1. a small sandpiper, Crocethia alba, that frequents sandy shores

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Etymology

Origin of sanderling

1595–1605; sand + -erling, representing Old English yrthling kind of bird (perhaps a plover), literally, plowman (compare obsolete English earthling plowman), equivalent to yrth plowing, tilling (derivative of erian to plow, ear ³; for -th, birth ) + -ling -ling ¹

Example Sentences

The first aviary focuses on shorebirds — plovers, sandpipers, sanderlings — that come to the Delaware Bay around Cape May, N.J., to munch on horseshoe crab eggs.

From Washington Post

A fourth bird, a sanderling, came in Monday.

From Los Angeles Times

Shorebirds such as sanderlings and plovers are down by about one-third, the team says.

From Science Magazine

Dr. Heather Barron’s patients range in size from sanderlings, tiny birds that can weigh as little as three and a half ounces, to loggerhead turtles that weigh hundreds of pounds.

From New York Times

We take long walks on the beach, where she watches those namesake shore-birds, the sanderlings, leaving no stone unturned.

From Literature