zeeland

I watched shorebirds in Zeeland, NL, with a Flemish bird group last weekend (Oost-Brabant Vogel Werk Groep, Natuurpunt). Imagine 12 spotting scopes set up all in a row and names of birds being called out right and left (in Dutch of course). It was incredible!

Long waves of 100's of shorebirds constantly landed in the diked wetlands and you could barely identify them fast enough before the next wave of species arrived (8 m below sea level on coast).

I've never seen so many oystercatchers, golden plovers or sandpipers before in my life - it was unbelievable. The Kluut, or Pied Avocet, was one of my favorites because of the striking plummage and stunning bill. Was fun to watch it forage.

I saw 29 "new" species but was too busy trying to keep track of them that I didn't keep a trip list. Am sure it was double that. By the end of the day, I was completely spent but satisfied. Below are my "new" birds, although some I've seen in the Americas, like the Fulvous Whistling Duck, Northern Pintail, Ruddy Turnstone, Sanderling, Whimbrel and Common Snipe. For info on this bird club: see http://www.natuurpunt.be/vogelwerkgroep-oost-brabant. One birder has a life list w 3000 species - now that's supreme!

Little Egret
Eurasian Spoonbill
Fulvous Whistling Duck
Northern Pintail
Eurasian Wigeon
Western Marsh Harrier
Hobby
Grey Partridge
Pied Avocet
Common Ringed Plover
Grey Plover
Eurasian Golden Plover
Red Knot
Sanderling
Ruddy Turnstone
Dunlin
Temminck's stint
Little stint
Wood sandpiper
Green sandpiper
Spotted redshank
Common greenshank
Bar-tailed Godwit
Eurasian Curlew
Whimbrel
Common snipe
Ruff
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Yellow Wagtail