Threats & Conservation: Unlike the related red knot, Calidris canutus rufa, populations of the semipalmated sandpiper are strong and no special status has been issued for the species. However, C. pusilla is protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, which prohibits the harassment, capture, kill and/or possession of listed migratory species (e.g. USFWS 2010). In addition, further conservation efforts by The Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network are ongoing through the protection of key nesting and stopover sites (Audubon 2010).