![\"Dunlin](\"https:\/\/www.thefreequark.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/10\/dunlinandseaweed2.jpg\" "\\"Dunlin")
<\/a>Dunlin on Mud – \u00a9ingridtaylar<\/p><\/div>\n
In the past week, a flock of Surf Scoters<\/a> took up residence near our community beach here in Seattle. It’s a tiny beach but the restored wetlands provide a haven for at least one Bald Eagle<\/a>, a Great Blue Heron, a Belted Kingfisher, an Osprey, and (so far) nine [found] salmon, perhaps having spawned, perhaps not.<\/p>\n A half mile off shore is an endless queue of scoter silhouettes, hundreds of them, mixed with Pigeon Guillemots<\/a> and the squeaky-toy chirps<\/a> of American Wigeon. When the Surf Scoters take flight and skim the ripples of Puget Sound, the “voice” of their wings bursts through the briny air and reminds me of home.<\/p>\n Scoters at Sunset – \u00a9ingridtaylar<\/p><\/div>\n Which brings me, in a semi-circular way, back to the Dunlin who graced me with some magic-hour close-ups as she foraged for dinner. I spotted her at the shoreline, settled into a sand drift and took a few shots. She saw me, too — and then surprised me by walking toward my camera. She came close enough that I could fill the frame with her textured plumage. Surf-dampened, she rooted around for food in the dry sand — worms or crustaceans — coming up with a sand-encrusted bill.<\/p>\n For this one blip on the timeline, I was able to share a small patch of earth with the other.<\/p>\n Dunlin at the Shoreline – \u00a9ingridtaylar<\/p><\/div>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/a>