Back to my blog beginnings, a walk down to the beach to look for the first hint of spring here--my beloved Oystercatchers, a large and showy shorebird, protected status, black and white feathered, squawking clowns with pink legs and orange beaks. They live in dedicated pairs or threesomes and return to exact nesting spots every year.
Off we go, on a sunny Sunday, avoiding the scary big trucks who groom the sand weekdays through April.
The vintage duck markers that we call the Par Ducks have survived the winter storms. The shell installation is obliterated, but the wooden ducks parade on.
The eastern gaggle has been repositioned to a higher place on the dune.
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The western Pars remain in the grassy edge area.
The beach is huge. 1.6 miles round trip,
And the boardwalk not entirely replaced.
I didn't really walk along the edge, just down and back in a tight loop. Oooh, out of shape for soft sand hiking, puff puff, gasp gasp.
They're here!
Just one couple.
There were many people on the beach, so the OCs were shy and probably exhausted after their long flight north. Photos are from quite a distance, quality is poor, sorry.
The other birds are sanderlings, a small sandpiper that travels in large flocks to the northern Canadian tundra to nest.
I didn't see any plovers, but evidence of nest tryouts were there, with footprints large and small--plovers and Oystercatchers. I hate that the work trucks destroy this gentle ritual each spring, though the OCs do try to carry on. The piping plovers though are less each year, last year only two nests, down from16 nests in the early 2010s.
On the way home, examining the dune verges, I found pussy willow in bloom. A newcomer to my dunes this year. I hope they grow well and flourish.
No seashells or seaglass due to extreme sand raking by one of the trucks, but my weird objects are emerging from the snow melt and drifted sand.
Looking back: ---Below is a link to one of my first posts back in 2010. Eleven years ago! It got no comments and only a few page views. The next couple posts are similar, with great pics using a telescopic digital camera I used to have. I thought you might enjoy the early unread posts, link is
sorry formatting is wonky on oldest pasts, too much to fix entirely.
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Baby Mo is not well, he has a bad ear infection and is traumatized by his vet visit. I will tuck him in to nap and be off for a short walk on tis windy but pretty day.
Have a great weekend!
love
lizzy
gone to the beach...
Vaccine shot ONE is done, next in 4 weeks. CVS, very efficient, only a short wait. No side effects, except sleepy, more due to all night power outage and worrying than the vax. Six weeks till normal life, hooray! Will the ''you're dead'' nightmares subside? Who knows. [my friend went online every morning for weeks at 5 AM to finally get me an appointment! I am so grateful for his efforts]
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