Camouflaged

I go to see the loons and pelicans at Westport, but as so often happens it’s what I see that I didn’t expect to see that makes the day special. As I was scanning the rocks at the bottom of the long boardwalk, I thought I saw something move. When I looked again, I couldn’t see anything but took this shot with my telephoto lens

Trnston1

and confirmed that there was, indeed, a bird feeding on the rocks.

The fact that it’s so hard to distinguish this Turnstone even in a tightly cropped shot

Trnston2

testifies to the effectiveness of their camouflage.

As it turned out, there wasn’t one but, rather, a small flock of Turnstones,

Trnston3

which became perfectly clear when they took off and flew under the boardwalk.

Trnston4

Amazing that something so well camouflaged suddenly flashes out so clearly when it takes flight. I wonder what evolutionary advantage that has.