Scurrying Sanderling
Sanderling are one of my favourite wading birds. Actually, they’re one of the few species of waders I can identify reliably. I appear to suffer from some form of wader-related blindness when it comes to identifying other species. Here’s one in its typical out-of-season garb:
And here’s one turning a rather fetching ginger for the breeding season. It’s not the colour I’d choose, since when I first grew a beard I found with slight consternation that it had two ginger stripes in it.
And here’s a more typical view of their activities. They frolic along the tideline, busying themselves with morsels and running backwards and forwards as if magnetically attached to each wave.
Sanderling are the child in each of us.
More Sanderling
The Sand Ploughman The name Sanderling is from the Old English sand-yrðling, or ‘sand-ploughman’. This one has been ploughing the tideline for tasty morsels and… read more
A splash of Sanderling It's a dull day but I'm forcing myself to go out. If you only ever went out on sunny days… read more
Sanderling incoming It's a dull day when the Sanderling arrive. It's soon bright and beautiful on the white shell sand beach as… read more
Sanderling #4 The Sanderlings of summer on Westray were a joy to get close to. Lying on the beach, keeping still, and… read more
Sanderling #1 There are Sanderling on Sands o' Maesan. They are energetic beyond imagination. They work the tideline as if their lives… read more
Westray Coast 50 – Day Two My adventures on the second of five days walking the entire coast of Westray. read more
Westray Coast 50 – Day One My adventures on the first of five days walking the entire coast of Westray. read more
Sanderling in the mud Sanderling. It sounds like it could be a verb as well as a noun. If it's a verb, then these… read more
Sanderling in the seaweed There's a juvenile Sanderling on the rocks. It pitter-patters busily among the seaweed. Suddenly I realise there are a flock… read more