kept arriving, flock after flock, and landing on the same stretch of beach. I don't know if this was a seasonal migration thing, or if they'd arrived to the area earlier and all these flocks flying in had more to do with the tides. Could've been either. According to my field guide, a good number (about 10,000) do winter in New Zealand, but they are also NZ's commonest migratory wader with about 100,000 counted each Summer. There was nobody nearby to ask, though, so I just had to stop and enjoy the impressive sight. |=)|
