Thursday 23 August 2012

[cobirds] Jackson Lake (Morgan County) Curlew Sandpiper

Greetings All,

More on my day en todo soon. However, to see a cruddy shot of the Curlew Sand (bird close to identifiable from photo, or perhaps, identifiable) go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/36088296@N08/

I watched this bird for a goodly ten minutes, with solid views through my scope. I jumped and yelled (to myself), "Curlew Sandpiper," when I first saw it. The shape and size were perfect, too pallid for Dunlin, dark-legged, etc. However, I kept looking for (as shown in most field guides) that scaly pattern on the back: dark subterminal mark on each back feather/scap, followed by contrasting whitish terminal band, giving a very scaly/frosty look. This bird lacked that, and I was confused. Whence back at my car, I looked at my photos, and decided that it must be a Curlew Sandpiper. At home, I was happy to see the first photo of a juvenile Curlew Sandpiper in The Shorebird Guide by O'Brien, Crossley, and Karlson. Though scaly-backed, the pattern is rather different than that depicted in Sibley, and the photo in The Shorebird Guide (color pattern and shape) are an excellent fit for the Jackson bird.

Good Birding
Steven Mlodinow 
Longmont, CO

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