Dunlin at dawn, Charwell Point, Prince Edward County | Calidris alpina | Bécasseau variable

            In Gaelic the name for Red Knot is Dun. Lin is a diminutive added to the end of words, so Dunlin means "little knot", a description that applies better to their dull winter plumage than the summer finery pictured above. 

Market hunters of old called them tar bellies, and blasted them out of the sky for sale as food. Peter Matthiessen's "The Wind Birds" is an extraordinary account of sandpipers and their kin, and details the wonder of this family, and the mass slaughter that so damaged their numbers.

I saw this one at Charwell Point on the southern shore of Prince Edward County. Located on the remotest stretch of Lake Ontario shoreline, the landform juts south into the water and is an inviting rest stop for migrating birds. With most songbirds now on their nesting grounds, birding attention locally switches to the shorebirds who are still powering their way north to the Arctic. I'll visit Charwell at dawn for the next couple weeks to see what drops in. This morning was good, with sightings of Sanderling, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Whimbrel, Red-necked Phalarope and Dunlin.

Taken in: Canada / Ontario / South Bay (show map)

Taken on: May 25, 2021

Tags:

Charwell Point

Prince Edward County

Canada

Dunlin

Calidris alpina

Bécasseau variable

Point Petre Provincial Wildlife Area

Bird

Wader

Shorebird

Sandpiper

Wildlife

Nature

Canon EOS 90D

EF600mm f/4L IS III USM

Breeding Plumage

Alternate Plumage « less

Sets appears in: • Prince Edward County

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Camera: Canon EOS 90D, f/7.1, 1/640 sec, 600mm, ISO 500 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS 90D
Lens:	EF600mm f/4L IS III USM
Aperture:	f/7.1
Exposure Time:	0.002 sec (1/640)
Focal Length:	600mm
ISO:	500
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	No Flash
Exposure Program:	Aperture-priority AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic 10.2 (Macintosh)
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