Trying to catch a Sandstar in Monster Hunter Wilds is by far the hardest of the endemic life quests you undertake—there's even an achievement linked to it. Still, if you want to complete the Samin's Special Research Report quest and conclude your endemic life hunts, you'll have to persevere.
The Sandstar is tricky to get for two main reasons: 1. It's extremely fast, like, it runs faster than your Seikret and 2. It only spawns in a particular place at a particular time. Thankfully, I've collated all of this vital info down below, as well as a trick that'll let you catch one of these weird roadrunners. Here's where to find a Sandstar in Monster Hunter Wilds.
Monster Hunter Wilds Sandstar location
You can find the Sandstar in area 11/13 of the Windward Plains, around the sand dunes near the desert oasis. You're essentially looking for a bright blue birdlike orb creature with long legs and a long black tail topped by another small blue orb. But here's the kicker: As far as I can tell, the Sandstar only spawns during nighttime in the season of plenty, when the region is rejuvenated, the skies are clear, and everything is covered in lush grass.
If you're unsure how to tell whether it's the time of plenty, open your map and look in the top left. You'll want it to read "Nighttime/Plenty". If you're desperate to catch it, pay Guild Points to change the time in your tent, though be warned that this isn't a guarantee it will spawn since it's rare. The other tricky thing is that you can't sneak up on the Sandstar—it'll run away at top speed before you do.
Your best bet is to use a Screamer Pod to stun the Sandstar—you might remember these as the projectiles you were firing to stun the swarm of Balahara during the intro. You can get these if you use your Hook Slinger to grab an Echo Feather from a Baunos. There are lots of these flying reptiles up in area 4 on the top level of the Windward Plains, though there are a few in area 11 as well close to where the Sandstar is. Now find the Sandstar, fire the projectile near it, and quickly equip the capture net in the essential items hotwheel to grab it while it's stunned. There's a clip below showing how it's done.
If that all sounds like too much effort you can also try to capture it while chasing on your Seikret. Usually the Sandstar doubles back towards you at certain points, so this can be a good opportunity. If you manage to chase it through the area 12 ravine into area 7 and 8, the Sandstar will potentially get stunned by thorny grass or stampeding Ceratonoth, which will let you catch it.
Once you have the Sandstar you'll get the "I caught a shooting star!" achievement and Samin will give you five wild herbs, ten honey, and 300 Guild Points.
