Wednesday, 18 November 2015

Wild Bird Wednesday 173 - Victorian Waders

Summer is wader time in SE Australia - huge numbers of waders migrate back to Australia from their breeding grounds in the Northern Hemisphere.  This movement of birds across the seasons messes with the the idea of 'summer' and 'winter' plumage as I understood it as a kid.  In reality, the birds are summer pretty much the whole year though - so calling the plumage 'breeding' and 'non-breeding' makes more sense.

It's always good to see birds here that have retained some breeding plumage as they come south, or produce some before they fly north.  At present there is a bit of excitement here as there is a Ruff in near breeding plumage on one of our local wetlands - although I have not been able to find it!

The birds this week are three of our most common waders - Red-Necked Stint, Curlew Sandpiper and Sharp-tailed Sandpiper.  I was once told that the best way to start identifying waders with confidence in Victoria is to start with these 3 species - because they will be what you see most of the time.  And once you can identify these with a bit of confidence it becomes much easier to spot birds which are not from these species - I'm very far from being an expert, but I think this was good advice.




Curlew Sandpiper
Curlew Sandpiper
Curlew Sandpiper
Curlew Sandpiper
Curlew Sandpiper
Sharp-Tailed Sandpiper 
Sharp-Tailed Sandpiper
Sharp-Tailed Sandpiper 
Red-Necked Stint
Red-Necked Stint 
Red-Necked Stint
Red-Necked Stint
Red-Necked Stint
You will notice that none of these birds is showing so much as a hint of their breeding plumage - but they still look good!

I will be in the middle of a great adventure when this post pops up on my blog - and I have no idea if I will have internet access or not (probably not!) - so please link up as normal and know that I will catch up with visits as soon as possible.  So, click the blue button and off you go!

34 comments:

  1. Fantastic photos, Stewart! Handsome little waders!

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  2. Nice collection of waders...two of them look very similar to some that we have here!

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  3. Absolutely fantastic wader pictures.

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  4. Great adventure ... are you bating us? Now I am anxiously awaiting your divulging the essence of a great adventure. I have two weeks of birds to comment on ... all of your pictures are great so I really don't have to say that anymore and all of your birds are unique so I don't have to say that anymore ... so what does that leave me with ... Hmmmm. Well, I know that it is always a learning experience to visit WBW and I always look forward to seeing what you will come up with. Your waders are awesome ...each seems to have similar markings but progressively more distinct as I pan down through the pictures. Don't seen and red on the Red Necked Stint though :( Last weeks Eastern Spinebill is quite the character ... I especially like where he is hanging on to two different flower heads. Great series ... both of them. Sorry I missed last week ... all I can tell you is don't visit a friend if her kids have runny noses ... before you know it you will be coughing and hacking and flat on your back :) Hope your Great adventure turns out the way you want it to :)

    Andrea @ From The Sol

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  5. Great photos of all those smaller shorebirds - but you don't mention that the Curlew Sandpiper is now on the endangered list! It makes me treasure each one I see.

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  6. They are so cute. I love to watching them trot back and forth with the surf. You'd think they'd get dizzy.

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  7. Love these photos and the ones with a reflection are fabulous. Enjoy your adventure Diane

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  8. Great photos! You must have a huge lens to get such close-up shots.

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  9. I just love to see waders darting in the waves. Beach time is the best.

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  10. they're all beauties. love the curlew sandpiper, especially.

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  11. They all look the same to me.Cute little sandpipers. Enjoy your adventure.

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  12. Some of the differences between sandpiper species can be quite subtle. Very nice comparison photos!

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  13. I enjoyed the photos of your waders. Waiting to hear about your grand adventure.

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  14. Beautiful images, great reflections too!

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  15. I always love waders and your photos of these sandpipers and stints are fantastic, Stewart. Thanks for hosting this meme. Greetings Jo

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  16. Shorebirds and sparrows drive me nuts!!! I'll take any hints you can give on starting to decipher their IDs.

    I had the good fortune to see a ruff several years ago while near High Island, Texas on my spring migration birding trip. Wasn't real close but my friend was able to get a picture at least and we could look at it through a scope. There's one down near the Georgia coast now that is causing considerable excitement.

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  17. Beautiful waders! Love the reflections shots! Hope you find that Ruff!

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  18. It's been awhile since I've linked to this. I finally had some bird photos to share.

    Enjoying your summer I see!

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  19. Really pretty shots, Stewart. Hope you're having a great adventure!

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  20. "Look good"????? These are super photos, Stewart...look at those reflections of the Stints...unbelievable!...:)JP

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  21. I used to love to watch the sandpipers skittering along the waters edge..Cute little birdies..Fun pictures...

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  22. Victorian waders? I was looking for long dresses and high collars. Great photos anyway...

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  23. Sandpipers are fun to watch! Enjoy your adventure.

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  24. What sweet bird shots.

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  25. Interesting birds and great shots.

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  26. The Sandpipers and the Stint, all really beautifully marked chaps and all so very similar. Happy you know them and can ID them so well~

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  27. They are all sweet and all still hard to identify for me. But I love watching them in real life and virtually; thanks! Happy adventuring!!!

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  28. Wow. So many cool waders. Hope the adventure is amazing!

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  29. A nice trio of birds on which to test our ID skills Stewart. I hope you managed to see the Ruff in some semblance of breeding plumage; I imagine that would be a bit of a mega sighting, especially as it is now almost full winter in the Northern Hemisphere.

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  30. Fantastic photos Stewart! Crystal clear...

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  31. love all vaders but rarely see them where I live :(

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  32. I'm really hoping to do some birding while in Vic this Dec/Jan!

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