odd shorebird Brooklyn NY

[Shane Blodgett]

At a friend's suggestion, I am posting a link to a couple of poor digishots
of an odd shorebird seen on Oct. 26 at Plumb Beach in Brooklyn NY. I know
there have been threads before about the futility of trying to put a label
on on a bird based on poor photos but I thought this bird was intriguing
enough to warrant throwing it out there.

The bird presented structurally like a long-winged but smallish Calidrid (
my initial thought was a longer-winged Least Sandpiper ), but had the
orange-red legs of a Ruddy Turnstone. When it first landed it froze for
about 2-3 seconds and then made a mad dash across the sand to the water's
edge where it hesitated just long enough to get these 2 digishots (did I
mention they were poor?):

http://tinyurl.com/yzcjpbe

It then took off and flew along the shore in front of me-with the sun at his
back of course-and gave a call like a Least on steroids, more like a Pectoral.

It landed very briefly and then took off again and disappeared over a sand bar
well out into the channel. In flight I noted long wings, random patches of
white in the wings and on the back and a white rump with a black tail band.
 
Suggestion's of possible hybrid combinations have been Ruddy/Least or
Ruddy/Pec.

Any thoughts?

Regards,
Shane Blodgett
Brooklyn NY


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[Bill Rudden]

Hi Shane:

Interesting pic.  IMO your pics cannot eliminate Least Sandpiper.

- the strong/low sun angle might redden the legs

- movement in profile pic: causing eye placement to be centered

                                         and bill to appear short

Respectfully, br

--- On Fri, 10/30/09, shane Blodgett <shaneblodgett@...> wrote:

From: shane Blodgett <shaneblodgett@...>
Subject: [BIRDWG01] odd shorebird Brooklyn NY
To: BIRDWG01@...
Date: Friday, October 30, 2009, 12:42 AM

At a friend's suggestion, I am posting a link to a couple of poor digishots
of an odd shorebird seen on Oct. 26 at Plumb Beach in Brooklyn NY. I know
there have been threads before about the futility of trying to put a label
on on a bird based on poor photos but I thought this bird was intriguing
enough to warrant throwing it out there.

The bird presented structurally like a long-winged but smallish Calidrid (
my initial thought was a longer-winged Least Sandpiper ), but had the
orange-red legs of a Ruddy Turnstone. When it first landed it froze for
about 2-3 seconds and then made a mad dash across the sand to the water's
edge where it hesitated just long enough to get these 2 digishots (did I
mention they were poor?):

http://tinyurl.com/yzcjpbe

It then took off and flew along the shore in front of me-with the sun at his
back of course-and gave a call like a Least on steroids, more like a Pectoral.

It landed very briefly and then took off again and disappeared over a sand bar
well out into the channel. In flight I noted long wings, random patches of
white in the wings and on the back and a white rump with a black tail band.

Suggestion's of possible hybrid combinations have been Ruddy/Least or
Ruddy/Pec.

Any thoughts?

Regards,
Shane Blodgett
Brooklyn NY


Join or Leave BIRDWG01: http://listserv.arizona.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=birdwg01

Archives: http://listserv.arizona.edu/archives/birdwg01.html

Join or Leave BIRDWG01: http://listserv.arizona.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=birdwg01

Archives: http://listserv.arizona.edu/archives/birdwg01.html