american avocet

Now in breeding plumage showing rich cinnamon color to the head and neck. They usually forage by scything, sweeping their upcurved bill from side to side in the shallow water. However as seen here, they also find food on the bottom by dipping their whole head under the water. Females have the...

These long-legged waders are surprisingly good swimmers. Their feet are partly webbed and they can paddle in a sitting position with tail held up as seen here. These birds are In winter plumage showing a gray wash on their head and neck.

A colony of American Avocets seen along the Black Point Wildlife Drive, Merritt Island, Florida.

I believe this is a male, not sure.Female bill is curved more?

A lifer for me. I tried to get closer but they took off.

These birds were flushed by some kid. Have every noticed if a boy see a bird he will always pick up a rock or stick and throw it at them. Must be an instinct carried over from the days when we had to hunt for dinner and lived in a cave. Of course I never did anything like that.

We had quite a fallout of birds on my favorite lake yesterday. There were Avocets, Willets, Spotted Sandpipers and Semipalmated Plovers in one big flock. There were an estimated 250 Willets and 50 Avocets, with only a few of the others. Never saw so many in my life.

Not quite into breeding plumage, one of the very few Avocets we see here this far south on the Baja, this birds waded so gracefully for me, I just had to catch a shot like this!!

What a storm we had yesterday! Pouring rain, thunder and lightning, trees knocked down, highways flooded, power out for several hours. So I didn't get any posting done, but I did get caught up on browsing, several days worth of photo editing, and started on my quilting homework. Today we have...

American Avocet (Recurvirostra americana) Male. San Luis Pass, Brazoria County, Texas, USA. Situated on the south-western end of Galveston Island, barrier island. Gulf of Mexico on the exposed side and West Bay on the sheltered side.

Even in a ruffled state they have an elegant look about them.

This one has been watching the Killdeers too closely, or maybe he is just tired of being watched. It was a unique opportunity for an image though. It is not a nest it is in the middle of the trail around the ponds where the nest should be.lol

Klee Klee...a little call to the others to let them know there is intruders around!!!!!That would be me lol!!!!

These birds are rarities in New England. Tough to get a shot from 600 feet away, but at least this is a "proof shot."

A natural pose as he has a look around the pond for more of his flock or perhaps a peek at the paparazzi.lol

It was a new and amazing place to bird for waders and I spent a hour and a half taking pictures of these guys. I am looking forward to a visit from Bob and Moose so I can share this place with them too.

I heard from some fellow birders how great this place is for avocets so I went to check it out for myself. They were in smaller ponds so I could get closer for photos it was amazing. There were numerous other birds too, but this is the best place for the avocets for sure.

This the first time I had every seen this bird. It was at my favorite lake. It was by itself as far as I could see. We apparently get a lot more shore birds than I realized. I guess they stop over on our lakes to rest and feed.

A group of American Avocet resting late evening.