Rollover Pass Avocets: June 2017

I unabashedly love Avocets. Two visits to Bolivar Peninsula, and each time I spent so much time shooting these elegant birds I ended up devoting an entire blog post to them.

That's not an apology. Just a reminiscence. ;)

A flock of about 50 or so were hanging out around some shallow puddles at Rollover Pass, just relaxing in the midday heat.  So I parked the car, rolled down the window, and settled in to watch them.

They weren't alone, either!  I was a little surprised to see Black Skimmers come flying in to join the Avocets.

"You can't see me ... I'm just another Avocet."

Sitting quietly in my car eventually paid off as individual birds started to ignore me, getting closer as they went about their business and enabling me to isolate them in my shots.

The puddle in which they were wading served two important roles.  It provided a sort of "fill flash" effect by bouncing light back up onto the birds from below, and it provided some pretty reflections.

I don't think there's a bird with a more striking profile.

I'm not sure if there was any food in the puddle, but this fellow seemed intent on finding some.

This behavior was new to me, and I had to do a little research to confirm that it is, in fact, normal.  Black Skimmers apparently do lay flat on the sand like they're dead to rest.  Just nature being unpredictable again!

Related Link:

• Rollover Pass Avocets: April 2016