The Big One that Got Away

When you compare this shot of a Marbled Godwit with yesterday’s shot of a Willet, it’s hard to believe that I could have confused them. Godwits definitely look much more orange than Willets. I did notice this during the shoot, but I thought it was because these shots were taken with the sun to my back while the shots of the Willets were taken into the sun.

The upward turn of the bill and the reddish-orange base of the Marbled Godwit definitely sets it apart from the Willet even when they’re both in breeding colors.

I thought this bird looked different even as it walked away from me,

but it immediately became obvious when I saw the downward curve of the beak when it flew away.

At first I thought it might be a Curlew, but it’s size and the length of its beak revealed it was a Whimbrel,

a bird I see even less commonly than a Curlew.

The real treat of the morning, though, was catching sight of a pod of Porpoises moving up the shoreline. When I first saw the dorsal fin I thought Orca, but once one jumped it was clear that it was a large porpoise.

Despite spending considerable time trying to get a shot of one of the dolphins as it sailed into the air, I had to settle for a shot that simply proves I did see a dolphin and wasn’t just making up a fishy tale.

2 thoughts on “The Big One that Got Away”

  1. Love seeing that Whimbrel and dolphin. The best part of being at the coast and staying long enough to see so many things. We see Willets and Marbled Godwits here all the time. Your photo in the previous post of the Willet with its wings in flight is so beautiful. No matter how often we see them, the shorebirds always wow us with their beauty.

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