Dear Charlotte and Tweeters,
The situation is so confusing with the banding code for the Sharp-tailed Sandpiper that I normally just write out the whole bloomin' name in my field notebook! It is even more confounding around here, where both the Sharp-tailed and Stilt Sandpipers are sought-after rarities in the very same places, during the the same season.
Kent Fiala has an interesting web page about the banding codes, at this link:
https://www.carolinabirdclub.org/misc/bandcodes.html

On this web page, he lists the codes for the Sharp-tailed Sandpiper as, first, SHAS, and then,  SPTS. He indicates that SHAS is the code used by the Bird Banding Lab, SPTS by the Institute for Bird Populations, if I am interpreting his columns correctly.
I like "SHAS" because it sounds cool if one pronounces it, almost like an athlete's nickname. Even so, this is one species whose code I almost never write down--too much danger of making a mistake.
Kent Fiala is the man behind the resurrection and maintenance of AviSys, a wonderful piece of birding software. He does this gratis, and so has earned the respect and gratitude of many birders who appreciate this tool. AviSys lets the user find this species by either SHAS or SPTS. If one types in STSA, AviSys presents a dialogue box, making one choose between the two species.
Yours truly,
Gary
On Sunday, September 6, 2020, 12:07:17 PM PDT, <byers345 at comcast.net> wrote:


Hi Tweeters,

                After I submitted my post to Tweeters about ½ hour ago, Dave Slager almost immediately pointed out that I got the 4-letter code for the Sharp-tailed Sandpiper wrong.  It's SPTS, not STPS.  Quiz tomorrow.  Charlotte Byers, Edmonds
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