Black-necked StiltCosta Rica bird species · Shorebirds
Shorebirds in Costa Rica: all 48 species, and where to see them
48 shorebirds, 37 of them migrants, and the few places where we have written one down.
Costa Rica's official list has 48 shorebirds, and 37 of them are migrants, listed as spending only part of the year here with no breeding record. Four are residents and four have both a resident and a migrant population. Three are accidental: the Pacific Golden-Plover, Piping Plover and Wattled Jacana. Thirty-two of the 48 belong to one family, the Scolopacidae, the family of the Willet, the Dunlin and the Least Sandpiper.
Every one of the 48 has its own page with a photo, but our own notes place only a few of them, so this page gives you the full list and says plainly where our notes are thin. We will not guess a beach or a mudflat we have not written down.
What we do name is short and specific. At Palo Verde and at Santa Rosa, the Double-striped Thick-Knee, in the open country at dusk. At Caño Negro, the Northern Jacana from the boat, one of the four water birds the refuge is known for, and the same jacana in front of Macaw Lodge, on the lake.
Where to see them
These are the 7 places where we name them, from our hotspot pages and each bird's own page.
- Place where we name them
- Highlands
- Caribbean Foothills
- Caribbean Lowlands
- Northern Pacific Lowlands
- Central and Southern Pacific Lowlands
- 1Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge and the Río FríoCaribbean LowlandsNorthern Jacana, Lesser Yellowlegs
- 2Tortuguero National Park and its canalsCaribbean LowlandsNorthern Jacana
- 3Palo Verde National Park and the Tempisque RiverNorthern Pacific LowlandsDouble-striped Thick-Knee, Black-necked Stilt, Pectoral Sandpiper
- 4Santa Rosa and Guanacaste National ParksNorthern Pacific LowlandsDouble-striped Thick-Knee
- 5Carara National ParkCentral and Southern Pacific LowlandsDouble-striped Thick-Knee, Northern Jacana, Hudsonian Whimbrel
- 6The Tárcoles River mangroves, by boatCentral and Southern Pacific LowlandsBlack-bellied Plover, Semipalmated Plover, Southern Lapwing, Collared Plover, Snowy Plover, Northern Jacana, Hudsonian Whimbrel, Willet
- 7Manuel Antonio National ParkCentral and Southern Pacific LowlandsSemipalmated Plover
All 48 shorebirds on the list
The full group as Costa Rica's official list has it, in the list's own order. Tick them off on the printable checklist.
Double-striped Thick-KneeHesperoburhinus bistriatusSeen at Carara National Park, Palo Verde National Park, 1 more
Black-necked StiltHimantopus mexicanusSeen at Palo Verde National Park
American AvocetRecurvirostra americanaA rare winter wader with an upturned bill, recorded in the northwest lowlands.
American OystercatcherHaematopus palliatusCosta Rica's only oystercatcher, a rare bird of quiet Pacific beaches and islands.
Black-bellied PloverPluvialis squatarolaSeen at Tárcoles River Mangroves
American Golden-PloverPluvialis dominicaA long-distance plover that passes through Costa Rica rather than staying.
Pacific Golden-PloverPluvialis fulvaA very rare Pacific wader, found on the Puntarenas beach in recent years.
KilldeerCharadrius vociferusA two-banded plover of open fields and muddy pond edges.
Semipalmated PloverCharadrius semipalmatusSeen at Manuel Antonio National Park, Tárcoles River Mangroves
Piping PloverCharadrius melodusAccidental here, with one Pacific coast record in 2009
Southern LapwingVanellus chilensisSeen at Tárcoles River Mangroves
Wilson's PloverAnarhynchus wilsoniaHeavy black bill, one breast band, Pacific beaches and salt pans.
Collared PloverAnarhynchus collarisSeen at Tárcoles River Mangroves
Snowy PloverAnarhynchus nivosusSeen at Tárcoles River Mangroves
Northern JacanaJacana spinosaSeen at Caño Negro, Carara National Park, 2 more
Wattled JacanaJacana jacanaAll-black jacana with red wattles, sporadic in southern Costa Rica
Upland SandpiperBartramia longicaudaA grassland sandpiper that mostly flies over; try open fields in fall.
Hudsonian WhimbrelNumenius hudsonicusSeen at Carara National Park, Tárcoles River Mangroves
Long-billed CurlewNumenius americanusA rare winter migrant on the Gulf of Nicoya flats, easy to miss among Whimbrels.
Hudsonian GodwitLimosa haemasticaA rare spring migrant on the Gulf of Nicoya, usually just passing over
Marbled GodwitLimosa fedoaA big, cinnamon-winged migrant shorebird of Pacific estuaries and mudflats.
Short-billed DowitcherLimnodromus griseusA migrant mudflat prober of the Gulf of Nicoya, told from its twin by voice.
Long-billed DowitcherLimnodromus scolopaceusA rare migrant sandpiper, best told from its look-alike by voice.
Wilson's SnipeGallinago delicataA striped, pudgy winter migrant that sits tight until nearly stepped on.
Wilson's PhalaropePhalaropus tricolorA spinning, duck-like shorebird that stops over on Gulf of Nicoya salt pans.
Red PhalaropePhalaropus fulicariusA rare ocean-going migrant, looked for offshore on the Pacific side.
Red-necked PhalaropePhalaropus lobatusA tiny spinning migrant, seen over the sea off the Pacific coast.
Spotted SandpiperActitis maculariusA teetering shorebird of rivers and beaches, here as a migrant.
Solitary SandpiperTringa solitariaA lone, trembling sandpiper of shaded streams and ponds, here on migration.
Wandering TattlerTringa incanaA tail-bobbing loner of rocky Pacific shores, here as a migrant visitor.
Lesser YellowlegsTringa flavipesSeen at Caño Negro
WilletTringa semipalmataSeen at Tárcoles River Mangroves
Greater YellowlegsTringa melanoleucaA tall, loud-voiced wader that winters on Costa Rican wetlands
Ruddy TurnstoneArenaria interpresA busy shorebird that flips stones and shells along the coast.
Red KnotCalidris canutusA pale, uncommon migrant shorebird of Pacific beaches, mudflats and salt flats.
SurfbirdCalidris virgataA grey rocky-shore sandpiper that passes along the Pacific coast
RuffCalidris pugnaxA pot-bellied sandpiper photographed once in Costa Rica, in Guanacaste rice fields.
Curlew SandpiperCalidris ferrugineaA rare Siberian shorebird that hides among the small peeps
Stilt SandpiperCalidris himantopusA long-legged migrant wader of Pacific salt pans and the Gulf of Nicoya
Buff-breasted SandpiperCalidris subruficollisA gentle, buff-toned shorebird that stops briefly on Costa Rican grass in fall.
SanderlingCalidris albaA pale migrant sandpiper that races the waves on Costa Rican beaches.
DunlinCalidris alpinaA very rare migrant sandpiper, placed around the Gulf of Nicoya.
Baird's SandpiperCalidris bairdiiA buff, long-winged Arctic sandpiper that stops over in Costa Rica.
White-rumped SandpiperCalidris fuscicollisA long-winged Arctic sandpiper passing through Costa Rica on its way south.
Least SandpiperCalidris minutillaTiny brown sandpiper, a Pacific coast migrant around the Gulf of Nicoya
Pectoral SandpiperCalidris melanotosSeen at Palo Verde National Park
Western SandpiperCalidris mauriSmall black-legged migrant sandpiper of Pacific shores and mudflats
Semipalmated SandpiperCalidris pusillaA tiny migrant sandpiper of Pacific mudflats, most numerous around the Gulf of Nicoya.
Names and status: AOCR Lista Oficial 2025-2026, June 2026 update.
Trips that find them
These trips name at least one of them on the way, most often the Northern Jacana or the Double-striped Thick-Knee.
- Dry Forest and the Gulf of NicoyaSee the itinerary
- Costa Rica Classic Birding, All InclusiveSee the itinerary
- Birding in Costa Rica's Northern ZoneSee the itinerary
- Dancing with QuetzalsSee the itinerary
- Carara, the Osa and the QuetzalSee the itinerary
- Three Slopes and ArenalSee the itinerary
- Arenal, the Pacific and the Quetzal ValleySee the itinerary
- Costa Rica's Top Birding SpotsSee the itinerary
- Birding in Costa Rica's Top Three DestinationsSee the itinerary
- Sarapiquí, Arenal and CararaSee the itinerary
- Birding in Costa Rica's Nicoya PeninsulaSee the itinerary
- The Deep South: Quetzals, San Vito and the Golfo DulceSee the itinerary
Is this bird on your list?
Tell us the birds you most want to see, your dates and how you like to travel, and one of our Costa Rica specialists comes back to you personally with a first itinerary built around them. That first version is just a place to start.
Or call us: 1 (800) 996-1139 from the US and Canada, +506 4052-2140 in Costa Rica.