Sail and all

  

I'll write more about this soon, but for now I'm sharing a photo of a Surfbird (Calidris virgata) eating a By-the-wind Sailor (Velella velella).  Photographed on Bodega Head on 21 March 2026.

At the end of the day

  

A quick shot of Marbled Godwits in end-of-the-day light in Bodega Harbor on 3 October 2025.  [You can click on the image for a larger version.]

Flocking together

  

Part of a large flock of shorebirds in Bodega Harbor this morning (21 January 2025) -- mostly Sanderling (Calidris alba) and Dunlin (Calidris alpina), with some Least Sandpipers (Calidris minutilla) and Western Sandpipers (Calidris mauri) mixed in.

In the lee

 

 

Western Sandpiper (Calidris mauri) on the left, and Snowy Plover (Anarhynchus nivosus) on the right, at Point Reyes on 29 November 2024.

Trio

  

I didn't have a lot of time, but as I was leaving work tonight there was nice light on the shorebirds in Bodega Harbor.  I'm always a fan of pictures that make it easy to compare species, so here's one with three species of sandpipers.  Can you find all three?

Most of them are Sanderlings (Calidris alba) -- there are a dozen of them, the palest of the three species.

On the right side of the photo, in the foreground and background, there are two Dunlin (Calidris alpina) -- they're a little bit larger, with a little bit longer bill, and much browner coloration.  

And the last one?  In the foreground the 4th bird from the left is a Western Sandpiper (Calidris mauri) -- the smallest of the three species, darker than Sanderlings but lighter than the Dunlin.

Holiday picnic at the beach?

  

A nice Baird's Sandpiper (Calidris bairdii) at Point Reyes this afternoon (2 September 2024).

The sandpiper was feeding along the wrack line, especially near clumps of eelgrass (Zostera marina):

 

 

Often it was possible to see prey trying to escape its grasp.  Below, look for the fly and a probable amphipod (beach hopper) in the air just to the left of the sandpiper:

 

 

 

Birds of a different feather

  

A few more miscellaneous bird photos from Hawai'i for you...

Above, a kōlea, or Pacific Golden-Plover (Pluvialis fulva), all dressed up for the breeding season and departing soon for the Arctic tundra.

 

 

 

Close-up of a nēnē , or Hawaiian Goose (Branta sandvicensis), endemic to the Hawaiian Islands.

 

 

 

 

A distant photo, but these were my first kioea, or Bristle-thighed Curlews (Numenius tahitiensis).

 

 

 

Also distant, but fun to see a pueo, or Hawaiian Short-eared Owl (Asio flammeus sandwichensis).

 

 

 

An ‘ūlili, or Wandering Tattler (Tringa incana) on a nice bed of limu kala. (I think this might be Sargassum aquifolium, formerly S. echinocarpum, but feel free to correct me!)  This endemic species is the state seaweed of Hawai'i and an important alga used in cultural practices by native Hawaiians.

 

 

 

‘Ā, or Brown Booby (Sula leucogaster).

Thanks for tuning in for some special guests from Hawai'i!

Line of Dunlin

  

Dunlin (Calidris alpinus) in Bodega Harbor, 8 December 2023 

 

Golden light

  

Field work has been keeping us busy, but here's a Long-billed Curlew with golden reflections from Point Reyes on 24 November 2023.

Side by side

 

 

A couple of days ago I noticed a few shorebirds in the distance on the rocky shore.  At first I thought all three were going to be Wandering Tattlers (Tringa incana), but with a closer view I could see that one of the birds looked different.

You can compare the two species in the photos above and below.  Note the shade of gray, the amount of pale feather edging, the facial markings around the eye, and the bill length and thickness.  In the photo below you might also be able to compare the leg color.

 

 

 

I usually encounter Red Knots (Calidris canutus) on the tidal flats in Bodega Harbor, so I haven't seen these two species side by side very often. 

The Wandering Tattler is darker gray, shows more subtle pale feather edges (so looks less "scaly"), has more substantial white markings encircling the eye, has a slightly long and thicker (less tapered) bill, and has yellower legs.

The Red Knot is paler gray, has extensive pale feather edges (so looks very "scaly"), has more subtle markings around the eye (but does have a dark line through the eye and pale line above the eye), has a slightly shorter and more tapered bill, and has greenish-yellow legs.

Now I'll show one photo of each so you can guess which is which:

 

 

 

 

 

Nicely done!  The first of the two photos shows a Red Knot and the second shows a Wandering Tattler.  Both of these birds are juveniles. 

Although knot so obvious from a distance, now that you know what to look for, it will be easier to help anyone who is wandering how to tell these juvenile shorebirds apart.  ;)

Trio

  

A quick shot, but it's always useful when you can compare several species in one photo.

From left to right: Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca), Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus), Long-billed Dowitcher (Limnodromus scolopaceus).

Photographed in Bodega Bay on 13 May 2023.

On and around the rocks

 

 

Purple Sandpipers (Calidris maritima) hunkered down in Scituate, Massachusetts, on 11 December 2022.

 

While trying to photograph the sandpipers, a duck appeared in a pool below them:

 

 

 

Fun to watch this Harlequin Duck (Histrionicus histrionicus) diving and spilling over the edge of the pool.  

Although these birds were a bit distant, here's a closer view of her:

 

 

 

In the harbor

  

A couple of quick shots from a shorebird survey in Bodega Harbor today (18 November 2022).

Above, a mixed flock, mostly Dunlin and Least Sandpipers.  (They were trying to evade a Peregrine Falcon.)

Below, a Wilson's Snipe -- it's a distant shot, but after 18 years of doing these surveys, it's the first time I've seen a Wilson's Snipe on the tidal flats.  In this area, I more often I encounter them in freshwater wetlands (for an example, see this post from last February).

 

 

Marsh tones

 

 

Haven't had a chance to share this Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melonotos) from Bodega Harbor on 9 September 2022.

Lingering

  

We lingered at the coast for a little while after work today (6 September 2022).  The tide was pretty high, but there were some shorebirds gathered along the harbor side of Doran Beach.  Above, a shorebird flock mostly made up of Western Sandpipers (Calidris mauri) but there's one Least Sandpiper (Calidris minutilla), too.  [Look for the one with the brownest back.]

And below, a Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos) was feeding on the flats.  It's the bird on the far right.  There are two Semipalmated Plovers (Charadrius semipalmatus) in the center and on the left, and a Least Sandpiper on the foreground.

 

 

Tattler views

  

I spent some time watching a Wandering Tattler (Tringa incana) near Salt Point today (22 May 2022).

 

 

 

The tattler seemed very interested in amphipods (small crustaceans) in shallow pools.  In the photo below, there's an amphipod at the tip of the tattler's bill (even more visible in the shadow):

 

 

 

 

One time the tattler was feeding near the edge of the water when a larger wave surged up on to the rock.  I just happened to have my camera ready and snapped a photo before it flew up higher on the shore: 

 

 

 

Watch out for sneaker waves!

For scale

  

A quick shot from Westshore Road along the Bodega Harbor shoreline today (18 May 2022).  It's always helpful to have examples of different species side-by-side to appreciate their different sizes.

Four species of shorebirds — Dunlin (lower left), Western Sandpiper (smallest, low center), Red Knots (four at lower right), and Marbled Godwits (in back).

New feathers

  

  Surfbird (Calidris virgata) starting to acquire breeding plumage (e.g., the black feathers with white edges, some with rust-colored spots).  Photographed on 7 April 2022.

In the prairie, after the rain

  

Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus) in the coastal prairie, 31 March 2022

In the Bodega Bay area, Whimbrel are often observed in marine and estuarine habitats — sandy beaches, mudflats, rocky shores.  But sometimes, especially when the ground is wet after rain, we'll see them feeding in the grassland.

 

 

 

 

I wonder if it reminds them of the tundra habitat that they'll spend time in during the breeding season?

 

 

 

In motion

 

 

Sanderlings (Calidris alba) and surf, 21 March 2022

 

[You can click on the image for a larger version.]