Tag Archives: Shorebirds

Shorebirds, and a Magical Mystery Tour

Posted on by August 18, 2016

I never expected to see a flock of shorebirds amongst the high peaks of Montana’s Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness last week. Golden eagles, yes. Elk and mule deer and marmots, yes. Single spotted sandpipers, sure. But there they were, in a synchronous flock, spinning like snowflakes over glacial Dewey Lake, more than 9000 feet above sea level. I don’t carry my excellent binoculars backpacking anymore. In my 60s, I aim to shoulder the lightest possible weight on our seven-day hikes (somewhere in the neighborhood … Continue

The Tenderness of Shorebirds

Posted on by November 9, 2015

“I keep vigil…. For those who suffer, and for those who keep vigil.”* This was my unexpected assignment on Saturday, as Jeff and I walked a remote outer stretch of St. Vincent Island. I came upon a red knot hunkered down at the water’s edge, a bundle of feathers pressed against the sand. We’d been admiring the knots as they moved through north Florida on their migration, 5 to 10 at a time, mostly.  They feed voraciously, plunging their bills over … Continue

Rebuilding

Posted on by November 2, 2015

When worldly events are too hard, or sad–especially then–we need to take time to realign ourselves with life rebuilding the world all around us. Life and death happen all the time, everywhere, in the natural world, and never is one creature cruel to another, even as they must eat. I saw a ruddy turnstone down the beach, stamping around in an intriguing fashion, so I quietly sat nearby, interested in what she was up to. Here in the sand is … Continue

More Precious than Diamonds, More Precious than Gold…

Posted on by August 28, 2015

When I approach the island, even before my kayak nudges into the sand, the first thing I look for are possible predators: crows, osprey, eagle, laughing gull—or the tracks of a trespassing human.  I’m surprised to see the broad wings of a turkey vulture skimming over the sand, tilting on the updrafts, on the look out for food.   Right on its tail, three American oystercatchers escort the vulture off the island. They pipe loudly and push the vulture out of … Continue

Occupy Sandbar!

Posted on by August 28, 2015

Occupy Sandbar: That’s what shorebirds do, because only on the edges of our coastline can they live. Last week, birders and biologists all over Florida put their binoculars together to see how the original snowbirds are doing on their wintering grounds (which we mostly think of as “our” beaches and sandbars).  It’s called the statewide Winter Shorebird Survey.  My assigned territory required a kayak trip about a mile off shore to a set of linear, mostly submerged sandbars in Franklin … Continue

Yearning to Join the Dance

Posted on by August 28, 2015

A really good contradance is the closest I’ve come to flying in a flock of shorebirds. In this kind of dance, you and your partner move with another couple through a series of figures with evocative names like Mad Robin, Box the Gnat, California Twirl, Ocean Wave, and Hey for Four. What transforms a contra from a series of rote steps to a transcendent experience is the ability of the group to synchronize.  You need a room full of people … Continue