Creatures in Crisis
Photograph of Eskimo Curlew (Numenius borealis), recorded as Critically Endangered
Eskimo Curlew (Numenius borealis). Image via Wikimedia Commons.

Critically Endangered

Eskimo Curlew

Numenius borealis

Eskimo Curlew is a shorebird in the family Scolopacidae (order Charadriiformes) — Numenius borealis, recorded as Critically Endangered.

Status
Critically Endangered
Scientific name
Numenius borealis
CITES
Appendix I
Taxonomy
Aves · Charadriiformes · Scolopacidae · Numenius

Appearance

Adults have long dark greyish legs and a long bill curved slightly downward. The upperparts are mottled brown and the underparts are light brown. The Eskimo curlew forms a species pair with the Asian little curlew (Numenius minutus), but is slightly larger, longer-winged, shorter legged, and warmer in plumage tone than its Asian relative.

Eskimo curlews are small curlews, about 30 centimetres (12 in) in length, weighing approximately 360 g (13 oz), and having a wingspan of 70 cm (28 in).

Range and habitat

In the 1800s, millions of Eskimo curlews followed migration routes from the present Yukon and Northwest Territories, flying east along the northern shore of Canada, then south over the Atlantic Ocean to South America in the winter.

Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.

Diet and breeding

Eskimo curlews pick up food by sight, and feed by probing. During the rest of their migration and on the breeding grounds, they eat insects.

Snails and other invertebrates (among them the extinct Rocky Mountain locust) also are part of their diet during migration.

In crisis

As there has not been a reliable sighting since 1987 or a confirmed sighting since 1963, the Eskimo curlew is considered Critically Endangered or possibly extinct.

CITES lists this taxon on Appendix I. Confirm the current appendix on the CITES checklist.

Eskimo Curlew is Critically Endangered on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.

Sources

Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on Eskimo Curlew, Wikidata item Q61857. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.

Photograph via Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia · Wikidata · IUCN Red List.

Same genus

Photograph of Far Eastern Curlew (Numenius madagascariensis), recorded as EndangeredEN

Far Eastern Curlew

Numenius madagascariensis
Photograph of Vaquita (Phocoena sinus), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Vaquita

Phocoena sinus
Photograph of Javan rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Javan rhinoceros

Rhinoceros sondaicus
Photograph of Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Sumatran orangutan

Pongo abelii

Quick answers

What is Eskimo Curlew?
Eskimo Curlew is a shorebird in the family Scolopacidae (order Charadriiformes) — Numenius borealis.
What is the conservation status of Eskimo Curlew?
Critically Endangered, as the IUCN category stored on Wikidata for Numenius borealis. Confirm the official assessment on iucnredlist.org.
Where does Eskimo Curlew live?
In the 1800s, millions of Eskimo curlews followed migration routes from the present Yukon and Northwest Territories, flying east along the northern shore of Canada, then south over the Atlantic Ocean to South America in the winter.
Why is Eskimo Curlew in crisis?
As there has not been a reliable sighting since 1987 or a confirmed sighting since 1963, the Eskimo curlew is considered Critically Endangered or possibly extinct.
Is this the IUCN Red List page for Numenius borealis?
No. This is a researched catalog account. The Red List is the assessment.
Is Eskimo Curlew a pet?
An animal on this catalog is in crisis in the wild. Keeping one is usually the wrong question.