ML110238911

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Observation details

We (4 Danish birders and myself) were driving through Novastoshna when I saw a largish shorebird headed SW along the road (to our left). Knowing only it was a golden-plover species, we turned around and decided to walk Dune Lake in hopes of relocating it. Before we saw it on the ground, it flushed from the lake bed and flew up towards the road where we lost track of it. It was then that some of the group thought they saw white underwings and that the call sounded like European Golden-Plover instead of Pacific. Not knowing where it went but very curious to see the bird again, we decided to walk Fantasy Wetlands in hopes of confirming suspicions. Again, before I saw the bird on the ground, it flushed and flew SW towards Big Lake. It was then that I managed to take the photos seen below. The white axillaries were always evident, the lack of toe projection past the tip of the tail, and call notes all fit perfectly with European Golden-Plover. Pictures were sent to experts very familiar with this species and all agreed this was a European Golden-Plover. This represents the 1st record from the Bering Sea region and only the 2nd or 3rd record from western North America.

Technical information

Model

NIKON D7100

Lens

AF-S Nikkor 300mm f/4D IF-ED

ISO

1250

Focal length

300 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire, auto

f-stop

f/6.3

Shutter speed

1/640 sec

Dimensions

1868 pixels x 1245 pixels

Original file size

674.56 KB