They scurry along, just at the edge of the incoming tide, feet in the water, stitching the sand under the waves with sharp bills, always in a hurry. I never see them swallow; their prey is tiny, even microscopic*. (Which accounts for the rush; it takes a lot of mouthfuls to make a meal.) They chatter contentedly among themselves as they go, "Peep, peep, peep!" And then suddenly, they all leap into the air together, the flock circles a couple of times, flashing white and black as they turn, then they flit far down the shore, to land and repeat the performance. "Peep, peep, peep!"
And they all look more or less alike. Little brown birds with spindly legs, some yellow (at least those are easily recognized) some black. Some have short beaks, some long, maybe curved.
And they always seem to be between us and the light, sometimes mere silhouettes to our unaided eyes.
These were busy at Oyster Bay at near high tide.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjXFAxhoaH1nVTm1f1C_E-fuQ0GmHCNE1019y_y0E0YCKVGB87ug0Gd9ufdgixtrZTB1h6dX7S42In-UcdJ7a6I8UqnwjU2y2TsuaIH7oxynFJ7jRC5heSDmjKbPfbSu0Q73t6XSRUHvQMCAr0XcFIbekG4AA2wBPQZ99ZcwCXRuH-AEqf7vbmkg/w640-h426/DSC_2990.jpg) |
A very small bird, foraging alone. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM5F4rlgXr7-2zdX9GtYUQVlCXKdhxMAdjhYmusIO1TGhftWCg9D-aFvzpqscKUDk9F2FboCf_5ayLZbtvRvBz0gJhyphenhyphenqYOKLq8KMNUF12kOLRsH8cCctYaCQzGRnN2QYZbpOIQemCRPO1THI38LYThE4av3dxgAvYsyvCemNxV_jaHNLc9tBGoRg/w640-h426/DSC_3021.jpg) |
Sanderlings, maybe? Peeps, anyhow. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXEgIg3ljfELmJOyyW_Z4hYviRNJfuq9GR2yWeV7fCVja6ofTO56jqoij2URT81SYgJKL3ttmRFcWngqaxvc4UVDamQQ-haW2C9xYkMViasRPOCegWXYmGRuclSnXkjBqA_OFcJDnGHF235ueejPCVJxak_-4BZdWg10495cziFZ9i-1soEc7t_g/w640-h360/long%20bills%203043.jpg) |
Dowitchers, maybe the long-billed dowitchers. (Short-billed dowitchers also have long bills.) |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis_urpPYkeTedX9efYFbpl4oeBlCdM9OAS3i4ScxFVwL9MoZO2RXh5xPGQfFT1wvvi7IHusE9lTOYVjKiYu3zNUuMtWpNJCUjsqYI4atMkMnNyKQ-3v0Vl6siuRWFRA0GcmPzTH5CVJU7iYis-mfSBEfB76RGPuEYxl8yKAEINkcN9hvv5oOMZWw/w640-h360/bonapartes%20gulls%202994.jpg) |
Not peeps. Bonaparte's gulls. Black heads, red legs. Just resting here; they eat mainly insects in breeding season. |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRC35DRGnvKkWXN5pmo87UeOU7nGVaUjL9RkSsSYc6vyV1V1-5YrP82-4D-p1c65d2XiYGxDyLzr7pnS8d3h8Wa0YEOzHHnZYuAyc_9D5BIEz0i2WhA_WhRQ29itFpXNtqWEgYwC5xkYB24cD_qXvKj2aL1qaHZAcjgHBpfuvRbo7NHdIQHhiUw/w640-h156/DSC_3052.jpg) |
Time to move along. |
*From All About Birds: Western Sandpipers, like other peep, eat “biofilm,” a frothy, scumlike mixture of diatoms, microbes, organic detritus, and sediment.
Least Sandpipers have a typical sandpiper diet: they "eat small invertebrates such as amphipods, isopods, gastropods, horseshoe crab eggs, water fleas, midges and flies, beetles, and dragonflies. They peck at prey on the surface and probe damp mud for buried prey, using the surface tension of the water to transport the item quickly from their bill tips to their mouths."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Corren a lo largo de la playa mientras sube la marea, con las patas en unos centímetros de agua, penetrando repetidamente la arena con sus picos agudos; como que siempre tienen prisa. Nunca los he visto tragarse nada; su presa es miniatura, hasta microscópica*, lo que explica el apuro; se requieren muchas bocadas para completar una comida. Discursan tranquilos mientras trabajan, un constante "Pío, pío, pío." Y de repente todos juntos se lanzan al aire, la bandada da una vuelta, mostrando plumas blancas y negras al cambiar de dirección, y rapidamente vuelan a un punto distante en la costa para volver a explorar la arena de la orilla. "¡Pío, pío, pío!"
Y es difícil distinguirlos; todas las especies de estas aves playeras se parecen. Pajaritos de color café con patas largas, unas amarillas (por lo menos, estos pájaros se pueden identificar), unas negras. Unas tienen picos largos, otras cortos, algunas tienen picos curvos.
Y parece que siempre, o casi siempre, se nos presentan con la luz de fondo, haciéndolas aparecer ante nuestros ojos como siluetas en movimiento continuo.
Estas aves playeras buscaban su comida mientras subía la marea en Oyster Bay.
- Un pajarito, muy chico, solitario.
- Correlimos, posiblemente.
- Agujetas, posiblemente las de picos largos. (Pero las de picos cortos también tienen los picos largos.)
- Estas son gaviotas de Bonaparte. Tienen cabezas negras, patas rojas. Descansan aquí; en la época reproductiva comen principalmente los insectos.
- Hora de ir a la próxima sección de la playa.
*De AllAboutBirds: "Los correlimos de Alaska Western Sandpipers, como otros correlimos, comen "película biológica", una mezcla espumosa de diatomea, microbios, restos orgánicos, y sedimentos.
El correlimos menudillo "come invertebrados pequeños tales como anfípodos, isópodos, caracoles marinos, huevos de cangrejo, "piojos acuáticos", moscos y moscas, escarabajos y libélulas. Cogen presa en la superficie y buscan presa enterrada entre lodo húmedo, usando la tensión de superficie del agua para trasportar el material rapidamente desde la punta del pico hasta la boca."
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