Distribution

Breeding Range

Figure 1. Breeds in 2 areas in w. Alaska between Yukon River and n. Seward Peninsula, the populations separated by about 300 km. Southern population in s. Nulato Hills (about 2,000 pairs; C. Handel unpubl.) on n. Yukon Delta from near Mountain Village to about 125 km north (62°30'N, 163°25'W); northern population on n.-central Seward Peninsula (about 1,200 pairs; C. Handel unpubl.) from Ear Mtn. east to Bering Land Bridge National Park and Preserve and south to Coffee Dome and Grantley Harbor (65°30'N, 164°40'W). Not known to breed elsewhere, although possible breeding north of Kotzebue Sound suggested by sporadic Jun records of single birds in the Mulgrave Hills and w. Baird Mtns. (G. Peltola pers. comm.) and by small flocks of birds in late summer on shores of Cape Krusenstern (Connors and Connors 1985 Connors, P. G. and C. S. Connors. (1985). "Shorebird littoral zone ecology of the southern Chukchi coast of Alaska." In Environmental assessment of the Alaskan continental shelf, final reports of principal investigators, 3-57. Boulder, CO: NOAA, Environ. Res. Lab. Close , Univ. Alaska Mus. [UAM] unpubl.). Recent survey of these locations during peak of breeding-display period failed to detect curlews (REG, TLT). Aerial surveys conducted in late 1980s revealed location of late-summer staging grounds from southern portion of Yukon River delta to Kuskokwim River and inland about 20 km (Figure 1). Distribution within region patchy; generally, more birds found in south and central portions than in north (REG, TLT).

Nonbreeding Range

See Figure 2. Winters on islands in Pacific Ocean from Northwestern Hawaiian Is. south to Marshall, Gilbert, Phoenix, Line, Tuvalu, Tokelau, Cook, Society, Tuamotu, Gambier, Marquesas, and Pitcairn archipelagos (Stickney 1943 Stickney, E. H. (1943). Birds collected during the Whitney South Sea Expedition: Northern shore birds in the Pacific. American Museum Novitates 1248. Close , Marks and Redmond 1994a Marks, J. S. and R. L. Redmond. (1994a). Conservation problems and research needs for Bristle-thighed Curlews Numenius tahitiensis on their wintering grounds. Bird Conservation International 4:329-341. Close , Blanvillain et al. 2002 Blanvillain, C., C. Florent and V. Thenot. (2002). Land birds of Tuamotu Archipelago, Polynesia: relative abundance and changes during the 20th century with particular reference to the critically endangered Polynesian Ground-Dove (Gallicolumba erythroptera). Biological Conservation 103:139-149. Close ). Less common on Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, Niue I., Austral Is., Caroline Is., Guam, and Mariana Is. (Baker 1951 Baker, R. H. (1951). The avifauna of Micronesia, its origin, evolution and distribution. Univ. Kansas Publ. Mus. Nat. Hist. 3:1-354. Close , Thibault and Thibault 1973 Thibault, B. and J. C. Thibault. (1973). Liste preliminaire des oiseaux de Polynesie Orientale. Oiseau Rev. Fr. Ornithol. 43:55-74. Close , Petitot and Petitot 1975 Petitot, C. and F. Petitot. (1975). Observations ornithologiques dans l'Atoll de Manihi (Archipel des Tuamotu) et dans l'Ile de Tubuai (Australes). Oiseau Rev. Fr. Ornithol. 45:83-88. Close , Child 1979 Child, P. (1979). Some bird observations from Western Samoa. Notornis 26:171-179. Close , Jenkins 1981 Jenkins, J. M. (1981). Seasonality and relative abundance of Guam shorebirds. Micronesica 17:181-184. Close , Kinsky and Yaldwyn 1981 Kinsky, F. C., and J. C. Yaldwyn (1981). The bird fauna of Niue Island, south-west Pacific, with special notes on the White-tailed Tropic Bird and Golden Plover. National Museum of New Zealand Miscellaneous Series 2. Close , Pratt and Bruner 1981 Pratt, H. D. and P. L. Bruner. (1981). Noteworthy records of nonbreeding birds in Micronesia. Micronesica 17:195-198. Close , Watling 1982 Watling, D. (1982). Birds of Fiji, Tonga and Samoa. Wellington, New Zealand: Millwood Press. Close , Buden 1996 Buden, D. W. (1996). Reptiles, birds, and mammals of Pakin Atoll, eastern Caroline Islands. Micronesica 29:37-48. Close , Stinson et al. 1997 Stinson, D. W., G. J. Wiles, and J. D. Reichel (1997). Occurrence of migrant shorebirds in the Mariana Islands. Journal of Field Ornithology 68:42–55. Close ). Highest numbers reported in Northwestern Hawaiian Is. (Laysan I., Lisianski I., Midway Atoll; Marks and Redmond 1994a Marks, J. S. and R. L. Redmond. (1994a). Conservation problems and research needs for Bristle-thighed Curlews Numenius tahitiensis on their wintering grounds. Bird Conservation International 4:329-341. Close ), Line Is. (Palmyra Atoll, Caroline Atoll; Kepler et al. 1994 Kepler, C. B., A. K. Kepler and D. H. Ellis. (1994). The natural history of Caroline Atoll, southern Line Islands. Part 2. Seabirds, other terrestrial animals, and conservation. Atoll Research Bulletin 398:1-61. Close , Marks and Redmond 1994a Marks, J. S. and R. L. Redmond. (1994a). Conservation problems and research needs for Bristle-thighed Curlews Numenius tahitiensis on their wintering grounds. Bird Conservation International 4:329-341. Close ), Marshall Is. (Erikub Atoll; Amerson 1969 Amerson, Jr., A. B. (1969). Ornithology of the Marshall and Gilbert islands. Atoll Research Bulletin 127. Close ), Cook Is. (Palmerston Atoll, Takutea I.; Burland 1964 Burland, J. C. (1964). Some notes on the bird life of Palmerston Atoll. Notornis 11:145-154. Close , Holyoak Holyoak 1976 Holyoak, D. T. (1976). Records of waders in the Cook Islands. Notornis 23:1-3. Close ), Tuamotu Archipelago (Rangiroa Atoll; Gill and Redmond 1992 Gill, Jr., R. E. and R. L. Redmond. (1992). Distribution, numbers, and habitat of Bristle-thighed Curlews (Numenius tahitiensis) on Rangiroa Atoll. Notornis 39:17-26. Close ), and Pitcairn Is. (Oeno I.; Brooke 1995 Brooke, M. de L. (1995). The modern avifauna of the Pitcairn Islands. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 56:199-212. Close ). Small numbers visit main Hawaiian Is. (Hawai‘i, O‘ahu, Kaua‘i) and sometimes overwinter (JSM, P. Donaldson pers. comm.). Rare on Nihoa and Necker in Northwestern Hawaiian Is. (Clapp and Kridler 1977 Clapp, R. B. and E. Kridler. (1977). The natural history of Necker Island, northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Atoll Research Bulletin 206:1-102. Close , Clapp et al. 1977 Clapp, R. B., E. Kridler and R. R. Fleet. (1977). The natural history of Nihoa Island, northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Atoll Research Bulletin 207:1-147. Close ). Subadults likely oversummer on all major wintering islands (e.g., Kirby 1925 Kirby, Jr., H. (1925). The birds of Fanning Island, central Pacific Ocean. Condor 27:185-197. Close , Stickney 1943 Stickney, E. H. (1943). Birds collected during the Whitney South Sea Expedition: Northern shore birds in the Pacific. American Museum Novitates 1248. Close , Gallagher 1960 Gallagher, M. D. (1960). Bird notes from Christmas Island, Pacific Ocean. Ibis 102 (4):489-502. Close , Clapp and Sibley 1971a Clapp, R. B. and F. C. Sibley. (1971a). Notes on the vascular flora and terrestrial vertebrates of Caroline Atoll, southern Line Islands. Atoll Research Bulletin 145. Close , Johnson 1973b Johnson, O. W. (1973b). Reproductive condition and other features of shorebirds resident at Eniwetok Atoll during the boreal summer. Condor 75:336–343. Close , Holyoak and Thibault 1984 Holyoak, D. T., and J.-C. Thibault. (1984). Contribution à l’étude des oiseaux de Polynésie orientale. Mémoires du Muséum national d’histoire naturelle Serie A, Zoologie 127:1–209. Close , Marks and Redmond 1996 Marks, J. S. and R. L. Redmond. (1996). Demography of Bristle-thighed Curlews Numenius tahitiensis wintering on Laysan Atoll. Ibis 138:438-447. Close ).

Extralimital Records

Vagrants documented from Easter I. (Vilina et al. 1992 Vilina, Y. A., A. Larrea and J. E. Gibbons. (1992). First record of the Bristle-thighed Curlew Numenius tahitiensis in Easter Island, Chile. Wader Study Group Bulletin 66:43-44. Close ), Solomon Is. (Scofield 1994 Scofield, P. (1994). Bristle-thighed Curlew in the Solomon Islands. Stilt 25:35-36. Close , Dutson Dutson 2001 Dutson, G. (2001). New distributional ranges for Melanesian birds. Emu 101:237-248. Close ), Kermadec Is. (Veitch 1974 Veitch, C. R. (1974). Bristle-thighed Curlew records from the Kermadec Islands. Notornis 21:83-84. Close ), Japan (Hokkaido I., Honshu I., Okinawa I., Ogasawara Is.; Brazil 1991 Brazil, M. (1991). The Birds of Japan. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), and Ecuador coast ( V. Brauer and G. Rosenberg pers. comm.). Unverified reports for Norfolk I. and Cairns, Australia (Higgins and Davies 1996 Higgins, P. J., and S. J. J. F. Davies (editors). (1996). Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic birds. Volume 3. Melbourne: Oxford University Press. Close ).

Nesting female color-banded near Curlew Lake, AK (62°21'N, 163°30'W), 21 Jun 1988 observed 21 May 1989 on Chukotka Peninsula, Russia (64°24'N, 173°55'W), about 500 km west of breeding grounds, constituting first record for mainland Asia (Konyukhov and McCaffery 1993 Konyukhov, N. B. and B. J. McCaffery. (1993). Second record of a Bristle-thighed Curlew from Asia and first record for the former Soviet Union. Wader Study Group Bulletin 70:22-23. Close ). Occurrence attributed to severe spring storm with strong east winds. No other records from area, suggesting breeding does not occur there.

Considered relict species; current distribution smaller than in past (Amadon 1953b Amadon, D. (1953b). Migratory birds of relict distribution: some inferences. Auk 70:461-469. Close ). Killed for food by humans on winter range (Kirby 1925 Kirby, Jr., H. (1925). The birds of Fanning Island, central Pacific Ocean. Condor 27:185-197. Close , Burland 1964 Burland, J. C. (1964). Some notes on the bird life of Palmerston Atoll. Notornis 11:145-154. Close , Wodzicki and Laird 1970 Wodzicki, K. and M. Laird. (1970). Birds and bird lore in the Tokelau Islands. Notornis 17:247-276. Close , Bruner 1972 Bruner, P. L. (1972). Field guide to the birds of French Polynesia. Honolulu, HI: Bernice P. Bishop Mus. Close , Gill and Redmond 1992 Gill, Jr., R. E. and R. L. Redmond. (1992). Distribution, numbers, and habitat of Bristle-thighed Curlews (Numenius tahitiensis) on Rangiroa Atoll. Notornis 39:17-26. Close ) and probably highly vulnerable to predation by introduced mammals when flightless during molt (Marks and Redmond 1994a Marks, J. S. and R. L. Redmond. (1994a). Conservation problems and research needs for Bristle-thighed Curlews Numenius tahitiensis on their wintering grounds. Bird Conservation International 4:329-341. Close ). Formerly present year-round on main Hawaiian Is. (Henshaw 1902a Henshaw, H. W. (1902a). Birds of the Hawaiian Islands being a complete list of the birds of the Hawaiian possessions with notes on their habits. Honolulu, HI: Thomas G. Thrum. Close ); numerous fossils suggest Bristle-thighed Curlews occurred in large numbers before arrival of Polynesians 1,600 yr ago (Olson and James 1982b Olson, S. L., and H. F. James (1982). Prodromus of the fossil avifauna of the Hawaiian Islands. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology no. 365, Washington, DC, USA. Close ). Similarly, wintering curlews disappeared from or declined in numbers on many Pacific islands following human colonization (Amerson 1969 Amerson, Jr., A. B. (1969). Ornithology of the Marshall and Gilbert islands. Atoll Research Bulletin 127. Close , Schipper 1985 Schipper, W. L. (1985). Observations of birds on Kwajalein Atoll 1978–1983. 'Elepaio 46:27–32. Close , Gill and Redmond 1992 Gill, Jr., R. E. and R. L. Redmond. (1992). Distribution, numbers, and habitat of Bristle-thighed Curlews (Numenius tahitiensis) on Rangiroa Atoll. Notornis 39:17-26. Close , Marks and Redmond 1994a Marks, J. S. and R. L. Redmond. (1994a). Conservation problems and research needs for Bristle-thighed Curlews Numenius tahitiensis on their wintering grounds. Bird Conservation International 4:329-341. Close , Steadman and Justice 1998 Steadman, D. W. and L. J. Justice. (1998). Prehistoric exploitation of birds on Mangareva, Gambier Islands, French Polynesia. Man and Culture in Oceania 14:81-98. Close ). Presumed to occupy most of historic breeding range in Alaska, but no information available.