>Having checked Paulson (Shorebirds of the PNW), I am still left with a
>question. Last evening on Lake Merrill, a Spotted Sandpiper made repeated
>flights off a snag in the lake to grab the large Hexagenia mayflies
>coming off the lake. In each case it returned to the snag, teetered
>appropriately while devouring the bug, and waited for the next
>opportunity.

>Grant Hendrickson


I think this is very unusual behavior indeed, as I've never seen shorebirds
capturing prey aerially in all the years I've watched them, including
several summers on northern breeding grounds where shorebirds commonly
perch in trees. I'm sure a sandpiper would grab at an insect that flew up
in front of it, but I've never seen one actually chase anything through the
air like a swallow (or flycatcher or waxwing, or starling, or just about
any passerine bird). Could you tell if it flew with its typical fluttery
flight or with a different wingbeat?

Dennis Paulson, Director phone: (206) 756-3798
Slater Museum of Natural History fax: (206) 756-3352
University of Puget Sound e-mail: dpaulson at ups.edu
Tacoma, WA 98416