Prepared
with our bins and cameras, a friend and I recently set off for a birding
adventure through a New Jersey marsh on a steamy hot day. I’m driving, thought
I, no bugs will get into the Jeep, so I left my insect repellent at home. But I
had over looked the need to open windows to shoot pictures. When we stopped to
get a closer look at sandpipers, interspersed with other small shore birds, I soon
realized our mistake.
My friend
got out with her camera to take a closer look, while I waited in the Jeep. Immediately,
I felt something biting my feet and legs: feasting green heads. To make matters
worse, I was wearing shorts. I swung open my door and shooed out the vicious
beasts.
Then, instead of focusing on scratching, I turned off the engine and
got out. While swatting flies, I managed a few pictures of Dowitchers (I’m not
sure whether they were long or short bill), Sandpipers, and Killdeer. A White
Pelican made a graceful descent into the pond, but was too far away for a clear
picture.
As we
continued on in the Jeep, the flies were our ever-present companions, both
inside and out, clinging to the Jeep ceiling and darting at the windows. In
spite of their biting presence, they did not ruin the afternoon.
Other birds
of interest were a Peregrine Falcon and fresh juvenile Forster Terns.
Fresh Juvenile Forster's Tern
