BirdsOfMastodon

Least Sandpipers, Kingsport Beach, NS

4 birds with short necks and long beaks are on a sandy and stony beach. They have white buff breasts and black and brown and white wings and heads.
Sandpipers on a beach

For bird lovers, here is a blast from the past remembering warm sunny days in August on the beach at Kingsport, Nova Scotia, watching the shorebirds going about their business.

We love walking on the beach, watching many small flocks of these little shorebirds forage for food or swooping and dipping over the water. When in the air they keep a tight formation, wheeling and banking so that at times the flash of the underside of their wings makes them invisible against the water behind them. They are approachable, not being frightened particularly, except when the ball or dog lands in their midst.

This was the photograph I got in August 2014. I owe it, in part, to my friend, Linda who walked with me and Joni (and waded with us through the incoming tide that caught us unawares) as, when I hesitated as to whether to bring my camera or not, she said “you always take your camera everywhere”, so I did. And I had chosen the right lens, for once.

My animals gallery, including this image, is here.

Snowed In

A bird with very fluffed up feathers is sitting on a snow covered branch looking directly at the camera. It has yellow eyes.
Snowed In

Winter’s coming and it’s getting colder for us and for all the wildlife around, including birds like this one. Here’s a challenge for all birders: what do we think this is? At first I thought ‘owl’ but on looking at it more closely I don’t think it is. I asked a local birder by email, with no response, but there were a few suggestions as to possibilities. This was taken through my living room window a few winters ago. The answer as to the identity is given below the next section if you want to see if you guessed correctly.

You can visit my animal photos, including birds, at my Animals gallery here.

It is a Red Tailed Hawk, fluffed up from the cold. It was difficult to be sure, as mostly these birds migrate south for the winter. In Nova Scotia, however, they stay year round. If you guessed that, then well done!!