Just returned from a SW Florida trip after meeting up with Gail B. While we were on a beach in our waders lying in the water, (life is sooo good!), a flock of fifteen whimbrels flew in front of us. They stayed fairly huddled together and cautious, no feeding, no preening. Within a minute off they flew. Later we spotted a couple and moved closer to them. They were glued together and only for a short while this bird distanced himself enough for me to grab a few frames. I notice the deeper pink/reddish stripe on the beak, indicative of breeding color. They are a fascinating shorebird with extraordinary migratory distances from the South American/Caribbean wintering grounds to "Arctic" tundra breeding grounds. Sadly, despite their 20-25 K migratory prowess, shorebirds from "shooting swamps" is legal and even traditional on many Caribbean islands that are not signatory to bird -protection agreements such as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. In the USA, this law has weakened under the Trump administration, actions that incidentally result in migratory bird death and injury (known as "incidental take") are legal as long as no other laws are broken.
Canon 1Dx
840mm
iso 640
7.1
1/3200