Friday, October 21, 2011

...he forgot to run!

..this little sanderling dared to be different. Instead of running from the wave, he stood his ground. I think he thought the water a little cold...

A Sanderling waits for a wave to sweep past it on Captiva Island, March 22, 2011.

"Whoa!"

The following excerpt by Peter Matthiessen from "The Wind Birds" captures the heart of a Sanderling so well (taken from "The Bedside Book of Birds--an Avian Miscellany," by Graeme Gibson. This book is a collection of bird stories, art, and poetry that I love.)
"The sanderling is the white sandpiper or "peep" of the summer beaches, the tireless toy bird that runs before the surf. Because of the bold role it plays in its immense surroundings, it is the one sandpiper that most people have noticed. Yet how few notice it at all, and few of the fewer still who recognize it will ever ask themselves why it is there or where it might be going. We stand there heedless of an extraordinary accomplishment: the diminutive creature making way for us along the beaches of July may be returning from an annual spring voyage which took it from central chile to nesting grounds in northeast Greenland, a distance of 8,000 miles. One has only to consider the life force packed tight into that puff of feathers to lay the mind wide open to the mysteries--the order of things, the why and the beginning."

18 comments:

  1. Such exquisite photos and keen eye!

    8,000 miles? Amazing! I have new respect for these creatures.

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  2. Wonderful photos Kelly - and the commentary is so interesting too.

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  3. Amazing facts, Kelly. I have fond memories of Sanderlings from when we visited St. Petersburg Bch. and stayed at the Sandpiper! I could watch them all day.

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  4. such lovely portraits, I love the bubbles too, at first i thought they were ice.

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  5. Cracking shots as always Kelly! Cheers, Seumus

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  6. Sweet little birds Kelly, my favourite wader by far.

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  7. Mathiesson's usually good for the deep stuff. :) But it is a nice quote and a cool bird. Have you looked into the ruddy turnstone, another shore bird? What bird has a better name than that? I don't suppose anyone's figured out WHY they do what they do . . . ?

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  8. Great post, and beautiful photos! Such a marvelous little bird.

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  9. An extraordinary, ordinary bird! These little guys, and so many others birds, have such remarkable lives, and we mostly don't even realize it.

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  10. great photos! and I'm going to amazon.com right now to get that book.
    Kay

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  11. Wow!... both the photos and the post

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  12. Hi Kelly

    These are wonderful photos and as you might expect I am equally impressed with the wonderful quote you found to accompany it. I will being looking for those titles right away.

    Thanks Guy

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  13. ...thanks, everyone. We all seem to agree...these little "toy" birds (I love Matthiessen's description) pack a punch and have the ability to turn our hearts too.

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  14. Awesome shots of the little Sandpiper Kelly! I love the quote from "The Wind Birds" also.

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