Bird of the Week – Least Sandpiper
Last week, WC featured a Bald Eagle, one of Alaska’s largest birds. This week, it’s one of the smallest, and certainly the smallest shorebird, the Least Sandpiper.
Least Sandpiper, Hartney Bay, Alaska
The out of focus bird behind and to the right is a Western Sandpiper. Even out of focus, you can see the bill is much longer and the eyebrow is stronger and longer. This photo was taken at the Copper River Shorebird Festival in 2012
One useful tip for improving your photos of birds is to get down to their level, rather than photographing them from above. This shot was taken with WC fully stretched out in the Hartney Bay mud.
Technical stuff: f5.7, 1/500 second, ISO200
More bird photos at Frozen Feather Images.
Life goes on.
What a sweet reminder of the wonderful world we share with Mother Nature and Father Time.
Many thanks, WC.
L’Chaim!
thatcrowwoman
Another Sunday, another gorgeous bird from WC’s amazing collection of photos. Health and peace.
I don’t remember seeing this one , though its small size should make it stand out and we are definitely in its migration path :
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/least_sandpiper/id
I’m terrible at sorting out birds in the sandpiper family.
It is embarrassing but sandpipers stay stuck in LBJ land for me…
Last paragraph is rilly good advice,since mike from iowa can’t fly. Not many shores around here. Shorebirds have to adapt to greenery.Kildeers and sandpipers around here tend to nest in cultivated fields and cattle yards. Not sure what effects this has on reproductive rates. 23 degree angled traction bars on tractor tires probably not good for egg shells. Have over the years stopped tillage and moved kildeer nests and jackrabbits while doing fieldwork. Sprayed baby jackrabbits with Treflan-a pre-plant herbicide-one year. We caught them critters and wiped them clean and moved them where the disk had already passed by. Used to watch deer mice with a passel of babies clinging to her as she fled the violent disruption of her corn and bean stubble world. That was funny.