Subject: Re: Basic-plumaged Dunlin/Western Sand ID (was: Re: East Bay, Oly, oops.)
Date: Jan 9 16:07:43 1998
From: Michael Price - mprice at mindlink.bc.ca


Hi Tweets,

Michael Hobbs writes:

>My problem is that by the time I get up to Samish Flats, it's late afternoon
>(2:30) and overcast, and the light is so bad a saint would look dingy.
>EVERYTHING looks cold grey-brown.

Oh dear, no light does make shorebird ID a little more challenging, doesn't it?

Barring your rolling up a bank of floodlights, I'd suggest that if available
light allows, Western Sandpipers would look paler and less contrasting than
Dunlin, the darker areas on it being confined to the back alone--Dunlin
would show a sharper contrast between dark upperparts and white underparts.
Bill length should be a *fairly* reliable separator: short-billed immie male
Westerns--and I don't think I've ever seen an obvious female Western in
winter here, I think they head further south with the adults--look more like
SemiSandpiper than Dunlin would with its long decurved bill, though to me
they look more 'bent' out toward the end than actually de*curved*.

If you see a flock of obviously smaller short-billed Calidris sandpipers in
a flock of Dunlin in low light, the likelihood in descending order would be:
Sanderling, Western, Least--common, uncommon to rare, rare. Do I foresee a
number of 'Calidris sp.' entries in your near future? '-) Main suggestion,
though, is maybe wait until the weekend or until the days are some longer
before tackling the little guys.

Michael Price A brave world, Sir,
Vancouver BC Canada full of religion, knavery and change;
mprice at mindlink.net we shall shortly see better days.
Aphra Behn (1640-1689)