For White-rumped Sanpiper lovers...a nice juvie.

[Daniel Cadieux]

So many White-rumped Sandpipers posted today, and after replying to one of the threads I got a special request from Artie to post one too. So here it is...taken on November 3rd, 2007 (in the days of the Rebel XT!!) This little guy attracted alot of attention during its short stay here as it is not the commonest shorebird around in these parts. Quite a chilly morning that was...that is ice forming on the water.

Canon Rebel XT + 100-400L @400mm, aperture priority, evaluative metering, 1/1600s., f/8, ISO 400, no EC, natural light, handheld.

[Grace Scalzo]

Beautiful bird, set up so nicely against the blue and the bit of ice forming is great. Fun sharing images of a single species today.

[Karl Egressy]

Very nice shot, Daniel. Like the looking back pose the reflection in the cold blue water.

[Kaustubh Deshpande]

Nice to see that you captured a nice head angle even back then :-) excellent angle, colors, IQ, DOF and exposure.

[Robert Holguin]

Wonderful shot. I really like the color of the water as it compliments the note nicely. Great composition and great pose along with a great reflection. Well done.

[noelle zaleski]

Very nice look back Daniel....poor guy looks chilly now that you mentioned ice.

I am not that familiar with shore birds so can you please tell me how you know this is a juvenile?

Thanks!
Noelle

[Chad Caswell]

I agree nice look back on this one... I would like to see a lower perspective, I believe this would help take away some of the distracting ice edges in the bkg, is this a pretty heavy crop from the original? if not. I would take a tad off the top along with the right showing more detail in the rare bird. its tough to see all the wonderful detail in their feathers at this crop.

Chad

[Mark Young]

Nice placement of the bird in frame.

[Daniel Cadieux]

Very nice look back Daniel....poor guy looks chilly now that you mentioned ice.

I am not that familiar with shore birds so can you please tell me how you know this is a juvenile?

Thanks!
Noelle

Thanks Noelle! For this species, the time taken was a huge clue, and as for most (if not all) shorebirds, the fresh "scalloped" look to the feathers is a field-mark to look for in juvies.

[Arthur Morris]

Thanks Dan. Loverly image as noted above. Your bird shows all the field marks: long wings, streaked flanks, and a bit of orange at the base of the lower mandible. And yes to the fresh scalloped look to the fringed feathers of the upperparts. Noelle and others wishing to learn the basics of ageing and identifying the common NA shorebirds are unabashedly directed to my Shorebirds; Beautiful Beachcombers.

As for the timing,Dan is very correct. Click here to see what the adults look like in fall.

As long as we have some learning going on, try these two questions:

1-what are the other two shorebirds that show orange bases to the lower mandibles?
2-Why will you never see a winter plumage White-rumped (or Semipalmated) Sandpiper in NA?

(No fair if you already have a copy of Shorebirds; Beautiful Beachcombers. )

[Arthur Morris]

More on your juvie: it is a moderately worn bird. A month before it would have had more reddish feather edgings especially on the back and the head. And there would have been more contrast between the darker cap and the grey hind neck. If you have a copy of The Shorebird Guide you can check out my (pretty lousy film) image of an early OCT juvie on the bottom of page 161.

[Daniel Cadieux]

Thanks Artie for the info on this species! As for your questions, I have you "Beautiful Beachcombers" book so its not fair I'll in Sibley's instead! I'll go for Semipalmated Plover, and Purple Sandpiper.

#2 is not something I know, but I'm sure the explanation will make sense...can't wait to hear it.

Speaking of October White-rumpeds, I thougt I had only seen the one posted above, but low and behold I photographed an individual on October 14th of the same year (2007)!! Different molting stage though...here it is for comparision's sake:

[Arthur Morris]

Wicked. The bird in Pane 12 is a young bird molting to 1st winter plumage. I had never seen one till now. The grey feathers are incoming winter feathers. The bird will retain many of the white-tipped and rufous-fringed feathers though they will wear quite a bit. Interesting in your last photo is the clearly seen grey hind nape that contrasts with the cap. Yes to Purple Sandpiper but I was going for another Calidris sandpiper (not a plover...).

We will give a few more folks a crack at this before coming clean with all of the answers.