The dunlins were feeding on Boundary Bay this afternoon; small flocks criss-crossed from sandbar to sandbar, some coming, some going, some more coming back. They never stay long in one place. I noticed that when they run on a sandbar, they all run at about the same speed, usually in the same direction, so that from a distance, they look connected, like wheels on an axle.
One group had a few odd-balls; I could see, even at a distance, solid black patches. I tiptoed up as close as they would let me; still too far for the camera's liking.
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| Black-bellied plovers, in full breeding regalia. |
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| The paler version is either a female, or immature. |
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| Some of the dunlins are wearing the black aprons, too. |
And far away, halfway across the bay, a rafts of ducks and gulls waited for the tide to drop. It was going out too slowly for me; I left the birds and came home for supper.
Wonderful seeing the shorebirds in their breeding plumage. Beautiful!
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