Dorian Anderson
11-25-2019, 12:22 AM
As my search for this species turned up nothing, I'd like to introduce the Rock Sandpiper! Generally Alaskan residents, these move down the
West Coast in small numbers during the colder months, a few reaching California each winter. In breeding plumage, these guys are reminiscent
of Dunlin, but in basic/winter plumage - shown here - they are virtually identical to Purple Sandpiper from the East Coast.
As this is one of only 2-3 individuals observed in California this winter, I was really stoked just to get my lens on him. The rocky peninsula he's
been favoring for the past two weeks does not offer the opportunity to get super low, but I was pretty happy with this result regardless. Yeah, the
foreground is a bit distracting, but the seaweed is a perfect representation of the habitat he prefers. With only a few of these bird in the lower 48,
I'll take it.
This is only the second time I've seen this species in 33 years of birding.
Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS II on EOS 5D4
1/100 at f/7.1, ISO 1000
Processed in LR CC. I removed a few distracting/bright spots on the seaweed.
184090
West Coast in small numbers during the colder months, a few reaching California each winter. In breeding plumage, these guys are reminiscent
of Dunlin, but in basic/winter plumage - shown here - they are virtually identical to Purple Sandpiper from the East Coast.
As this is one of only 2-3 individuals observed in California this winter, I was really stoked just to get my lens on him. The rocky peninsula he's
been favoring for the past two weeks does not offer the opportunity to get super low, but I was pretty happy with this result regardless. Yeah, the
foreground is a bit distracting, but the seaweed is a perfect representation of the habitat he prefers. With only a few of these bird in the lower 48,
I'll take it.
This is only the second time I've seen this species in 33 years of birding.
Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS II on EOS 5D4
1/100 at f/7.1, ISO 1000
Processed in LR CC. I removed a few distracting/bright spots on the seaweed.
184090