Bowdoin Shorebirds

At Bowdoin NWR we did find a few shorebirds to photograph.

long-billed dowitcher
marbled godwit
American avocet
black necked stilt

It was interesting to be able to photograph the avocets again. The last time that I photographed avocets was at the Elk Horn Slough near Monterey, CA back in February of 2007. At that time they where just starting to change into their breeding plumage.
Notice that this avocet, from California, has very little color on its neck and head at the end of February, but as the breeding season progresses, March - August, the head and neck turn a rusty red, as shown below on this bird from Bowdoin.

I had contemplated registering for the Pothole and Prairie Birding Festival that is being held out in North Dakota this weekend. I decided to add a couple of days to my Yellowstone trip so that we could stop at the parks in Montana instead, because it would be cheaper since we were already going that way. I think that it was a good decision. I ended up seeing many of the birds that are on the festival birdlist and a few birds that I would not have been likely to see in North Dakota like the black-necked stilt, red-necked phalarope, prairie falcon, and golden eagle. The birds that I did not see I may get a chance in August when I participate in a shorebird workshop in South Dakota. Besides it looks as if the whole upper Midwest region is going to be stormy this weekend. Clouds, rain and storms may be all right for birding but it makes it hard to get the good pics.