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As the Sun creeps closer to the horizon bringing with it more and more twilight my mind turns more to spring and the return of our migrants, still some four months away. It seems strange that I’ll miss the return of the Sun this year, as I leave this week for a trade show and [...]

Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca) photos by Larry Jordan Shorebirds. Why are they seemingly so difficult to identify? One obvious reason is that most have plumage variations between their breeding plumage and non-breeding plumage. Plus many sandpipers plumages are very similar. Take the Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca) for example (click on photos for full sized images). You would [...]

The White-rumped Sandpiper is an entertaining shorebird, aggressive and ornery, willing to chase other birds from the area it is feeding in no matter how abundant the food source is.  Their long wings extend past their tail and give them a sleek look even when they are in the midst of fattening up for their [...]

Juvenile Least Sandpipers are among the most beautiful of shorebirds.  Their gorgeous white-fringed feathers and propensity for allowing close approach combine to make them a treat every single summer during shorebird season.  Sure, young Short-billed Dowitchers are also attractive creatures, American Avocets and Wilson’s Phalaropes are just plain neat to see, and everyone likes to [...]

The first half of the day on Sunday was reserved for birding a couple of hot spots in the counties north of New York City, and the first of those hot spots was Blue Chip Farm in southern Ulster County.  Seth, Stella, and I made our way north and, as we approached Blue Chip Farm, [...]

While I am undoubtedly a fan of wandering, sometimes it just makes sense to leverage the power of purpose. Honestly, who has time to just meander through the woods looking up at the canopy in the vain hope that something interesting will cross your field of vision? I don’t and doubt you do either. That’s [...]

Read enough birding trip reports on this or any other site and you’re sure to hear about peeps. Birders run into peeps all the time, so you can be sure the term does not refer to those sickly-sweet marshmallow chicks that only spring up around Easter. Nor is this term restricted to teens talking about [...]