Knot variations

 

 

Well, I had some trouble deciding which Red Knot photos to share, so here's a selection:

Feather details and variations:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Actively feeding:

 

 

 

 

A small flock, with a few dowitchers.  The dowitchers are on the left and right sides of the photo, and there's also one dowitcher mixed in with the knots (in the back row, with a browner head and back):

 

 

 

 

One more photo, showing a banded bird.  I've reported it and made some inquiries, so perhaps we'll find out where this knot was banded (Alaska?  Washington?).  Banded birds can help identify migration routes, which in the case of Red Knots can include ~8,000 km (~5,000 mile) non-stop flights!

 

 

 

ADDENDUM (22 May 2021):  I submitted this record of a banded Red Knot to the Bird Banding Lab and a few people who might have connections to knot researchers.  Nils Warnock (from Audubon Canyon Ranch) wrote back that Jim Johnson (from USFWS) responded that this bird had been banded on the Seward Peninsula near Nome, Alaska!