Lingering Shorebirds

 On a recent trip to Renews, Margie M. and I stayed quite late in the day. As the sun was going down, we made one last check of the beach.

 There, we found Yellowlegs in high numbers, both Lesser and Greater. The Hudsonian Godwit was present as were two Black-bellied Plovers. The Semipalmated Plover seen earlier in the day was gone.

 However, a quick scan down the beach revealed a small sandpiper. I started the walk. Before I could reach the point where I saw the small bird, I came across four sandpipers.

They looked so small. Driven by the report of a Baird's Sandpiper on this beach, I focused on these birds in the hopes I would get lucky.

 These birds looked soooo small. I guess it was because they were flanked by yellowlegs and the godwit.

 Anyway, it was time to make an ID. Through the process of elimination, we settled on White-rumped Sandpipers.

 Their legs were clearly not yellow and there was no webbing on the feet. That really only left the White-rumped as the possible species, especially when the rump was exposed. That clinched it!

 I looked and photographed them all. No matter how hard I tried, I just could not find one that was buffy enough to be a Baird's. Although, the third image posted here shows a bird with a much straighter beak than most White-rumped Sandpipers.

Despite that, the whole thought process to arrive at the White-rumped Sandpiper was interesting and beneficial.