ML371134481

Age and sex

Juvenile, Unknown sex - 1

Behaviors

Foraging or eating

Observation details

Found juvenile bird foraging lagoon's mudbanks on the northwest side of creek. A Red-Necked Phalarope foraged close a few times, and didn't seem to distract the bird. Upon examining my photos, the plumage on this stilt appears brown on wings, back and crown. The brown is a richer coloration on back, while pale edges mark its flight feathers. The nape isn’t grey or light-colored as displayed in my Sibley’s guide for juveniles, and is a darker brown or possibly black. Its wings did appear long compared to its tail, which could be another sign of its youth, according to my guide. I watched the bird forage for a few minutes, moving my position around the corner of the lagoon alongside the Snowy Plover fence line for a closer peek. The bird tripped a few times from maneuvering through the gooey, sticky mud, and eventually began to make its way a bit northward along the western bank, though didn't appear to be in a hurry to leave the area. This was my first good look at a stilt in SLO county, the last time in distant fog at a lagoon in Oceano, CA. Video (33 seconds): https://twitter.com/nickbelardes/status/1440045259560402944?s=21

Technical information

Dimensions

1440 pixels x 1086 pixels

Original file size

412.66 KB