Sandpiper

[Daniel Mantle <>]

Hi all
 
Great find Alastair and thanks for the heads up. I headed out to Jerrabomberra after work to look for this bird. There were only two Black-fronted Dotterel on the pond across the paddocks (in the corner near the Molongo) but upon returning to Kelly's Swamp I was able to find the bird keeping company with a Sharp-tailed Sandpiper. The birds were directly across the lake from the Cygnus Hide and initially quite hard to spot as they moved in and out of view behind clumps of grass. There was also a Latham's Snipe feeding in the area.
 
Although I only saw the bird in fading light it certainly appears to be a fresh juvenile with fine streaking on the breast sides and warm buffish wash across the upper breast and particularly prominent white supercilium. Distance across the lake is too great to make out the neat pale fringed scapulars and covets typical of juvenile Curlew Sandpipers but the overall brownish-grey upperparts would also suggest a juvenile bird.
 
Cheers Dan
 

 

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Date: Wed, 16 Sep 2009 20:17:57 +1000
Subject: [canberrabirds] Sandpiper

Alastair (not, for reasons highlighted quite recently, a practising chatliner) has sent me a long-range pic (camera against binos method)  which appears to confirm his call of a Curlew Sandpiper at the ‘northern ponds’ mentioned in Steve Holliday’s message a few days ago.  Not a classic CS, but perhaps a juvenile.   Seen this morning with 2 sharpies.

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