Avocet and Wilson's Phalrope at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge...

I am behind on my posts, so I am going to play catchup by reporting on the first American Avocet of the year that I got at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in Queens NY on August 19th.

I began my hike around the East Pond at Jamaica Bay by starting from the South Flats heading North on the East side of the pond. It was going to be a long walk, but I wanted to do a thorough search of the pond. The birds at the South end were not numerous and I quickly made it to the area called the Raunt on the pond. As I was photographing some peeps (the birding term used to describe several species of sandpiper of the genus Calidris), I got a phone call from another birder who was ahead of me on the flats and was told that an American Avocet was on the pond. I quickly headed to the location, found the Avocet and was able to get some photos. I continued on towards the end of the South flats, where I had another good find in a Wilson's Phalarope.