Bird Watching: "On the Waterfront" - Part 6, 0 by linthicum

linthicum wrote:
Thank you everyone, again.

And, Resin, thank you for clearing up the identification issue. I'll never be able to properly identify the different Sandpipers and some of the other shorebirds. Do any of them inter-breed ? The reason I went with the Solitary Sandpiper was two-fold ..... (1) some local "expert" birders posted sightings of the Spotted Sandpiper and a Solitary Sandpiper at the same location a day or two before my visit. And (2), the distinct white circle around the eye. The photos in my bird books don't show that white circle on the Pectoral Sandpiper. But you're absolutely right about the slightly curved bill. Anyway, that's what makes it interesting. Thanks, again. Now, I will have to look more closely at my other 'Solitary Sandpiper' photos.

Burd, while at this location (Swan Creek), I only use my 500mm lens on a tripod. The Sandpipers were fairly close (less than 100 ft.), but the others were probably several hundred feet away. Until I can perfect the process at 500mm, I seldom use my 1.4x and 1.7x teleconverters, although many of the birds are too far away, across the wetlands, for the 500mm lens.

The wetlands is loaded with what some people call "Marsh Mallows". I was lucky to get this female ' Orchard Oriole' sitting among the beautiful white flowers.