On a Beach with Some Birds on a Summer Day

   When I awoke this morning, there was a book title on my mind:

   In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day

   The book and the content had nothing to do with my yesterday's story (but it is a good book). It just seemed as though I could borrow some of the wording to introduce my blog today.

   (The mind is a funny thing and especially the connections it makes out of the blue.)

   Anyway our day began with a quick trip to the beach before the summer people got all the parking places at Gould's Inlet.

   People were doing all the usual beach things:

         Getting a kayak lesson before going out into the river..

         Paddleboarding

         Fishing

   My charming wife suggested I go for a walk on the beach, and she would wait for me in the car. She does not navigate the sand too well these days. So, I took my camera and started out across the walkway to the sand bar and toward the ocean.

   As I walked along, I noticed a person ahead of me looking at something over in the middle of the bar, and this person looked like they had a camera, and so I went that way to see what the interest happened to be.

   Turned out it was not a camera but a scope that she was using. As I approached, the lady asked if I wanted a look.

   Sure, might be a good photo somewhere around here.

   She was looking at some small birds.

   "Terns", she said anticipating my question. "They are Least Terns, and they are nesting here on the beach".

   She introduced herself as Lydia and proceeded to inform me about the birds and their migrations and habitats. "They are raising their chicks, feeding them, teaching them, and getting them ready for life. They migrate to the Brazilian coast for the winter and then return. My job as a Bird Steward is to monitor the nesting site and inform any asking beachgoers about the species."

   We talked about the birds for a few minutes, and I tried to get some shots of them. They were pretty far away but I managed a couple with my regular lens.

   I began this day with a plan for a short walk on the beach and ended up with some bird knowledge. My bird education is not extensive. I didn't know a sea gull from a tern or a plover or whatever else there is out there. There were just sea birds, and that was OK with me.

   But when I came home, I looked the Least Tern up in my bird book, and read about them on the internet, and now, at least I know, that this little bird is not the same as all the others, and all because of striking up a conversation with a lady who knew.

   Hopefully, I will see the beach in a different way when I go back again.

   God did not make just birds, but a huge variety for our enjoyment.

   This last shot is not too sharp, but it shows a chick on the far right, with some family nearby. The chicks move around from hiding place to hiding place, and ofttimes the ones they find are not too concealing. Good luck, chick.

   It was a good morning..