Christmas Birding

     Before the days festivities, my friend Jeana and I got in some glorious beach birding at Jones Beach out near where our parents live. We got a great dose of vitamin D, a mild sunny day made it feel like anything but Christmas, but I'm happy to wear a few less layers, always.
     It was also great to share some new birds to Jeana to add to their growing life list. Birding with others is so much fun, it makes every bird special because there is shared celebration in birds new to those around you. We also earned our dinner walking through the sand and climbing over rocks on the jetty.
     The morning got the day off on a good note for sure!

At the Coast Guard station we saw these 2 of 4 common eiders, a black scoter, lots of gulls, a slew of red-breasted mergansers, and an obligatory pair of mallard.

We walked the west end beach to the Jetty, and we noticed some birds at the end of it in the water. Tide was low, so it seemed safe to traverse... So we walked some of the rocks.
The payoff were lifer harlequin ducks for my friend :)

We both from the shore regarded them as bufflehead, from a backlit, far away look, that seemed right.
But when we got there we both said, no, too much white on the face, a slightly different shape to the head and bill.

These two dove, nonchalantly along the jetty.
Please note the very important duck tongue near the upper right corner. 

Diving ducks also have very funny feet, allowing them to power themselves under the water to find the yummy things to eat.

Speaking of funny, also off the Jetty a common eider foraged, with not just its funny feet, but its funny face.
Something compelled this duck to book it in toward the female harlequins. It funny feet paddling furiously using the surf to push it inland.

That funny face is used to help them pluck yummy things up from the sea floor, like mollusks.

Except today, it had a taste not for bivalves...

Crab, anyone?

This bird shook this crab around and then eventually swallowed it whole, with the legs still on. It looked uncomfortable to me, but I suppose delicious for the eider.

Little dunlin getting splashed in the surf like it is NBD that they weigh next to nothing and the same ocean waves that knock me on my butt and nearly steal my bathing suit, are just like a little splish-splash nonsense to these birbs.

A lot of very pretty red-throated loons out on the water. Super pointy!

Another special lifer for Jeana this day, a Bonaparte's Gull!

It even landed in the water for us so we could see it's pattern baldness winter field mark on its head and super bright front of its primaries.

It is also very small and very cute.

When walking back to the parking lot, along the Jetty these dunlin took me and my heart by surprise.
Inwalking along the rocks I heard a soft "peep" and began to look for a bird. And to my surprise there was this small group of dunlin and floofed, round, and staying warm on the rocks right next to us. We were over taken by the cuteness.

He sees you when you're sleeping.
He knows when you're awake.
He knows if you've been bad or good, so be an ethical birder for goodness sake!
This dunlin has its eye on you!
Happy Holidays!