Western Willet Portrait

Willet Images, Facts and Information:

Tringa semipalmata

  • Willets are large gray to brown shorebirds with long gray legs with thick straight bills.
  • Western Willets differ from Eastern Willets in ecology and their calls.
  • Willets are the only North American sandpiper whose breeding range extends into the tropics.
  • Western Willets prefer to breed in grasslands and prairies near freshwater while Eastern Willets prefer coastal saltmarshes, barrier beaches and islands.
  • During the winter Western Willets migrate south and winter along coastal areas while Eastern Willets migrate further south.
  • Willets lay 4 to 5 eggs which take 22 to 29 days to hatch. Both sexes incubate but only the male incubates at night.
  • Willets can live up to 10 years

I hope you enjoy viewing my Willet photos.