Sometimes..Sunsets have wings..

Howdee all,

I took the below photos a few days ago at the causeway that leads into the park.

We thought it would be nice to end our day here..

The sun was starting to set…

lighting up the scenery..

It was low tide…

At low tide the birds come into the causeway..

Dinner time…

 

We watched the sky change over the pond at the south side of the causeway.

We watched the birds fly south over the pond to their evening roosts..

By groups..

And singly

The day comes to a quiet close..

We watch a few last minute meals..

The sun sets..

Turning the clouds pink..

and…

Then we watched the sunset fly…

Sometimes..

  Sunsets have wings..

 

*****************************************************************

Just two more days here at Huntington Beach State Park before we head further south.

It is a rainy day today and we will spend most of the day indoors catching up with paperwork and cleaning.

Internet time has been limited for us while traveling because we are relying on our Mifi device…we have to watch our Gigabyte usage and not go over the allotted amount.

Hopefully our next campground will have Wifi

Storms a comin…

Howdee all,

Jeff washed the Homey…so naturally we were ready for rain.

This storm came a day after he washed Homey..

Usually it happens much sooner..

I think Jeff is out of practice ;)…

We knew by the clouds (and the weather forecast) that we had a few hours for our morning walk.

We decided to walk to the jetty to see the Razorbill

One lone fisherman at the end of the jetty..

Those dots are Horned Grebe

There are hundreds of them in the area..

We saw the Razorbill ~they were out past the opposite jetty..

We watched them a while before heading back..

On our way off the jetty we spy this little bird..

Jeff and I weren't sure but it looked like a pale Savannah..

After looking at our guide we determined it was an

Ipswich Sparrow

A pale version of the Savannah..

Usually seen further north..

Storm clouds to the south…

I picked up that sweet little dried out sea urchin to add to my

Huntington Beach State Park treasure collection

We stopped again when we saw this little sparrow

 

The Ipswich Sparrow is a geographically isolated subspecies of the savannah sparrow. This small sparrow breeds strictly on Sable Island, Nova Scotia and winters along the mid-Atlantic coast. Their nape, back, and rump are dark brown with varying degrees of streaking. Their crown is typically beige with a pale yellow eye-stripe. Ipswich sparrows have a whitish colored throat, breast, and belly. Light streaking occurs along their sides and chest, but not much along the belly. The Ipswich sparrow is overall paler and larger than the continental savannah sparrow.

via http://www.conservewildlifenj.org/species/fieldguide/view/Passerculus%20sandwichensis%20princeps/

 

Storm cloud over the ocean..

Interesting cloud formation over the dunes..

Further down the beach we come across another

Ipswich Sparrow..

DIET

The Ipswich sparrow feeds along shoreline habitat alone or in small flocks in non-breeding months. They typically walk when hunting instead of hopping as their continental counterparts would. They hunt for insects, insect larvae, and other small arthropods all while walking on the ground. During the winter months, seed is a particularly important food source.

Via

http://www.conservewildlifenj.org/species/fieldguide/view/Passerculus%20sandwichensis%20princeps/

The clouds are moving and changing as we walk the 2 miles back to the campground…

We focus on the ocean looking at the storm..

We scan for birds..

We see a few Northern Gannet..

A distant fin..

Dolphin?

Brown Pelican flying low across the surf..

We made it back before the rain..

Another lovely day at the Beach..

Huntington State Park, South Carolina

Searching for Razorbill

Howdee all,

Before searching for Razorbill ..

make sure you wash the graffiti off your windows.

Its also a great way to make it rain.

 

Before searching for Razorbill..

Walk 2 miles stopping whenever you see a bird…

Sanderling..

Stop and take a photo

Or two

of the cute little Sanderlings romping around at the edge of the ocean..

Before searching for Razorbill…

Make sure you stop and say hello to the Ring-billed Gull

and take its photo as well..

Before searching for Razorbill…

Stop and watch the Ruddy Turnstone search for breakfast..

Before searching for Razorbill..

Walk down the jetty to the end..…

Stop to look at the thousands of shorebirds on the opposite jetty

and sigh because you can not get any closer..

Before searching for Razorbill

Check out the sides of the jetty for Bonaparte Gulls feasting..

Before searching for Razorbill

take another photo of a Bonaparte's Gull

When you are almost at the end of the jetty..

Begin searching for Razorbill.

Scan the area between both jettys..

You might find a few Razorbill..

We found 13

When we first spotted them they were straight out from the opposite jetty..

'just floating and resting..

We watched them for a good half hour ..

Then they started to move toward the jetty we were on.

North beach Jetty, Huntington Beach State Park, SC

They began feeding along the end of the jetty..

They sure could stay under water a long time..

With my little point and shoot..I was lucky to grab a photo before they would go under water again..

Razorbill

LIFE BIRD!!!

After searching and finding the Razorbill..

Do the Razorbill life bird shuffle..

(No photos included)

Then head back to the campground….

With Razorbill elation!

Razorbill

There have been many Razorbill sightings this winter..well south of what has been normal for them.

Read more by clicking on the links below..

A large auk of the northern Atlantic Ocean, the Razorbill can be found offshore in winter as far south as New Jersey, and occasionally Virginia.

Razorbills Invade Florida

Razorbill is an alcid of cold North Atlantic waters and rarely strays south of Cape Hatteras, NC, in the United States. The state of Florida previously had 14 records of this species, so last week when multiple Razorbills started appearing in Florida—including flocks of more than 20 birds—it was clear that something very odd was going on. This invasion has continued to strengthen, with some Razorbills turning up as far south as Miami and the Florida Keys, via ebird

 

10000 Birds~ The Razorbill Invasion of Florida

Great photos here~~Stokes Birding Blog~ Razorbills, Gulf Coast of FL on Sanibel & Captiva

Birding is Fun ~Flying Penguins, Dead Razorbills and the Big Birding Drama Unfolding in FL

 Nemesis Bird~ Washed-up Razorbill-Florida

 

Birds of the day

Feb 18, 2013
Huntington Beach SP--North Beach
Traveling
3 miles
180 Minutes
Observers: 2
All birds reported? Yes
Comments:  
Submitted from BirdLog NA for iOS, version 1.5.2
2 White-winged Scoter
7 Bufflehead
2 Red-breasted Merganser
6 Red-throated Loon
12 Common Loon
50 Horned Grebe
4 Northern Gannet
32 Double-crested Cormorant
10 Brown Pelican
1 Great Blue Heron
1 Great Egret
6 Semipalmated Plover
2 Willet
12 Ruddy Turnstone
24 Sanderling
1 Purple Sandpiper
32 Dunlin
45 Bonaparte's Gull
5 Ring-billed Gull
4 Herring Gull
1 Forster's Tern
13 Razorbill
35 Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle)
3 Northern Cardinal