Limnodromus scolopaceus (being mocked by a stick)

Made a point to get down to Lake Chabot and go for a walk today. It's strange to experience such unseasonably warm temperatures, especially at a time when so many people on the east coast are unable to stay warm, given the winter franken-weather and power outages.

This bird is a Long-Billed Dowitcher. There were 10 of them feeding along the shore of the lake in a little pack. They're called "sewing machine birds" because of the way they rapidly probe their bills straight down into the mud--much like this one was doing. This shot happened by chance, when the bird I was photographing walked by that stick and I noticed how similarly they were shaped. I find after so many years of photographing nature, scanning the situation before you and waiting for captivating details to emerge, that strange coincidences like this one are happening all the time.

Dowitchers are divided into two species, the Long-Billed and Short-Billed. They can be especially difficult to distinguish from one another in the field, though as distinctive traits pile up, the call isn't impossible. Long-Billed Dowitchers are more likely to be found on fresh water. The bill is longer (obviously--though it's not always so), the forehead is shallower, the back is more indented, and the legs are relatively longer as well. Also significant--and the evidence that clinched it for me today--is the fact that Long-Bills constantly chatter softly while feeding, whereas the Short-Bills remain silent.