ML642002504

Dettagli dell'osservazione

Continuing. First found on Sept 4th by Paul Saraceni at Pier 94. It was challenging to judge this birds size relative to the nearby Semipalmated Plovers because of the uneven surface they were standing on as well as depth perception but it wasn’t hulking over the other plovers. It seemed a bit larger but the longer wings were notable when it was in profile. The legs of this bird were very bright orange which may be due to CRPL retaining alternate plumage longer than SEPL? We didn’t see any yellow orbital ring and the lores had significantly more black than the pinched appearance in semi plovers. Zane and I both thought the head was a bit blockier. We were able to get pretty close by walking into the parking lot at the end of Yosemite ave and get a scope on it. We zoomed in on some photos and noted just the faintest amount of skin between the toes. This bird never vocalized while we were there, at least we never detected it. A really neat study and kudos to Paul and other SF birders for picking this SF county record out. Photos and a more detailed report to be submitted to CBRC.