Ardea alba

Man, did I need a dose of the birds today. The first day of school was fully overwhelming, with massive doses of information, responsibility, and unfamiliar human beings being hurled at me all day. I suppose this was always how the first day went, but I had happily forgotten all about it during my seven year hiatus of traveling, birding, and generally doing whatever I felt like. Hmm...is this real life?

This here: a Great Egret patiently fishing along a slough at Arcata Marsh. I took dozens of shots of it, hoping for interesting reflections. This was my favorite. Also present out on the bay was a delicious pile of shorebirds, back in from the Arctic: Marbled Godwits, Willets, Black-Bellied Plovers, American Avocets, and peeps.