I’ll start out this post with a great big SIGH. When it comes to birds, I’ve developed some tricks over the years that help me out in the identification phase. These aids include capturing as many angles as I can, focusing on any unusual characteristics it might possesses and making sure to take a few snaps at any birds in the vicinity. Generally one of these will get me in the right ballpark and then it is just a matter of a little reading to narrow the two or three options to the right one… or rather the one I’m going with – ID are never guaranteed around here at LifeIntrigued and always graciously welcome a discussion should a reader come up with a differing opinion. Today’s post happens to be one of those situations where most of the tricks FAILED to deliver a quick answer. In fact, most of this month has been spent debating back and forth between all the reference manuals on my library shelf and any bird sites on the Internet that had something to say on the subject. No reason to keep this a mystery any longer. Again, heralding out of Henderson Nevada’s Bird Viewing Preserve we bring you a new bird to blog.
This particular bird does have some unique features that should have made it very easy to identify. First and foremost, the long black beak seems like it should have narrowed the field significantly in itself. Turns out there a few birds that fit this characteristic.
- Common Sandpiper
- Green Sandpiper
- Solitary Sandpiper
- Eastern Willet
- Western Willet
- Stilt Sandpiper
- Short Billed Dowitcher
- Long Billed Dowitcher
- Yellowlegs
- Dunlin
- Curlew Sandpiper
- Barn Swallow
I was not expecting a starting list this long. Realizing this was not going to be as easy as expected, I settled into processing mode. Okay, sticking with the bill, there is a definite downward curvature that should provide some list thinning
Hit the jump to continue following along with the identification process.. and see more pics!
Wildlife Intrigued 