Photos of the Week
February 7, 2014
A lovely sunny, cold day at NorthPoint
Port of Olympia
Olympia, WA
The unusually clear and cold weather
made for some terrific photo opportunities. When I first arrived, the tide was
still high and the diving ducks – Goldeneye, Bufflehead, Scaup – were all near
the shore. The Buffleheads were in fine form; the males were busy showing off
in preparation for the mating season. Lots of chasing and displaying going on
amongst them.
Further out in the bay, dozens of
Common Mergansers could be seen swimming and fishing together. A Bald Eagle
flew over my head, being chased by three gulls.
As the tide began to recede, three
killdeer appeared on the beach. Next, a large flock of Western Sandpipers
performed their aerial acrobatics before settling down on the rocky beach to
feed. Periodically, the whole throng took flight to avoid a potential threat.
Finally, the opportunistic neighbors
– Ring-billed gull, Mew gull and Northwestern Crow – arrived to take advantage
of the shorebirds’ skills at pulling worms.
