Subject: [Tweeters] Clams CAN take revenge ! they can strike Back
Date: Sep 16 09:22:34 2014
From: rickswan - rickswan at telus.net


Clams CAN take revenge ! They can strike Back rickswan at telus.net Delta BC

Sept.16th 2014 . Yesterday, Monday while at the NE corner of the Roberts bank Coal Port Causeway / Westshore Container Terminal , Delta BC . Not the Best place for Birders [ Lots of Heavy Truck Traffic ] but a good location to observe Caspian Tern Re Site Leg Bands . After a Peregrine swept the shoreline on the rising tide attempting to trap a few shorebirds [ Bairds,Pectorals, Westerns and Killdeer ] against the Rip Rap wall . The large flock of Gulls and a few terns took to the air .
But one smaller Ring Bill / Mute Gull caught my eye immediately !! It had Labored flight and ONE DROOPING LEG with of course a Clam Attached to the webbing . I grabbed my camera quickly turning it on as the Gull circled just overhead to capture My Forth such occurrence of CLAMS REVENGE !! BUT I had not changed the setting from the Previous Night and My camera was useless with a Night time Exposure time .
I watched as the hampered gull circled high enough to BARELY crest over the Electrical cables that Line the Length of the causeway to disappear to the West side of the causeway . Yet another victim of those crafty clams. I do have photographs of some of the Previous Occurrences but they are Buried in the computer somewhere

April 30th 2011 Sat.
This morning in front of the Pump House at Boundary Bay Metro Park the Beach Grove Lagoon area Tsawwassen Delta , B.C. . I saw a Bald Eagle in full pursuit of a shorebird ? Now this intrigued me to no end as the small shorebird was more then able to evade the Eagle by a succession of quick turns but the Eagle persisted ? Are what turned out to be a dunlin tired the Eagle and fortuitously the shore bird flew closer to the dyke and almost directly at me. I was able to see rapidly that something was suspended by one leg a large object that turned out to be a CLAM shell !!!
This is the THIRD time I've seen birds trapped and maimed by Clams ! The other times involved seagulls! Being as both Seagulls and Shorebirds have Clams of various types on the menu These almost stationary bivalves can strike back ! Somehow the Dunlin tangled one leg in the opened clam shell. I did hope to get closer to the Dunlin but it was still very mobile . And as one of the attached photographs show . I did almost get a photo of it taking off . I HOPE you can make out the hyper extended leg!
After taking flight it was set upon by two seagulls . But like the Bald eagle they failed to grab it. This Dunlin had the wherewithal to turn and out maneuver the gulls in spite of it's heavy burden ! I did loose sight of the bird though
Yours Richard Swanston Delta B.C. Canada