At 09:08 PM 9/7/97 PST, Jack wrote:

>Summary - I agree with Michael Price that there is insufficient information
>rendered by the portrait to make an absolute identification. It is not
>impossible that this is an oil-stained bird which would further complicate
the
>identification process. I am leaning toward an oil-stained Pectoral
Sandpiper
>which is in the process of post-nuptial (=prebasic) myself. Oil-stained
birds
>often exhibit some level of debilitation as evidenced by this bird's limp. I
>would have liked to have known the location and date of the sighting. It
would
>have helped put the sighting into context.
>
Yes, but there can be many causing of limping in birds. A hard landing,
bumblefoot (an infection of the foot causing soreness and not obvious
swelling), sprain, late-season mating injury, old break that healed wrong,
etc. I don't think the limp is really much help.

Peggi
Ben & Peggi Rodgers
Aptos, CA (near Santa Cruz 122 W, 37 N)
USA
woodduck at cruzio.com
http://www2.cruzio.com/~woodduck/


"A bird does not sing because it has an answer,
It sings because it has a song"