Long-billed Curlew, Numenius americanus, – Freezeout Lake, Montana:
Perhaps many people would be surprised to discover that shorebirds are
not always found along the seashore.
In fact, most of North Americans shorebird species nest inland on the
vast grasslands of the western and central plains and on the Arctic and
Sub-Arctic Tundra.
The long-billed curlew is a large
shorebird that nest on the North American grasslands. They range from British Columbia south to Nevada and
eastward to the Great Plains.
While breeding and raising young on the grasslands they primarily eat
grasshoppers, beetles and various insects.
The long-billed curlew winters in
Mexico and along the southern and eastern coast from North Carolina to
Florida. Those that winter along
the seashore are often seen probing mud flats and sandy shores for crabs and other small invertebrates. The long bill of the long-billed curlew
allows them to probe deeper in the sediment and reach food not available to
shorebirds with shorter bills, thus various species of shorebirds can feed on
the same flats with out competing with one another.
Throughout my travels in the grasslands of Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming I
encountered long-billed curlew, but non were photographically cooperative. As soon as I stopped, the birds would
take flight. But, my luck turned
when I arrived in Montana.
I found this, and other curlews in a field as I was driving the roads on
Freezeout Lake Wildlife Management Area.
When I stopped the van the birds took flight, but instead of flying
away, they flew toward me. It
appeared that a nest was in the area, but I could not see young birds scurrying
through the grass. A scene I had
observed on numerous occasions when I stopped to photograph other curlews.
With the birds flying overhead and scolding me, I knew I only had a few
minutes to work. If these birds
were late nesters, I did not want to keep them from their nest very long. I quickly grabbed my camera with a
300mm lens and took hand held shots of the birds as they flew overhead. Within a few minutes I had the images I
sought and was on my way.
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