Leftovers

Not everything in life fits into neat categories — thank goodness — and these shots are just leftovers from our California trip. Debbie and I spent a considerable amount of time trying to identify this raptor without a positive identification, though we both thought it might be a juvenile that hadn’t fully developed its plumage. John tells me he thinks it’s a juvenile Prairie Falcon and he knows more about hawks than I do.

Here’s a shorebird I’ve only seen a few times but was pretty convinced it was a Spotted Sandpiper (lacking the spots, of course, because it’s in its non-breeding plumage.)

We made a quick stop on our way to Santa Cruz from Fresno but ended up seeing remarkably few birds considering the amount of time we spent getting there. My favorite shot would have to be this one of a Black-Necked Stilt.

This American Coot was alone and quite close to the road, so I had to get a shot of him.