Sometimes you get lucky, and this day was exceptional! The only shorebird I could find on the entire lake was ready for a photo shoot! He found the most interesting settings in which to pose, and wasn’t bothered at all by me stalking him in the kayak. This little guy is a juvenile Spotted Sandpiper, bobbing and teetering along, looking for small invertebrates to snap up from the water or vegetation. Allaboutbirds.org describes this species as being polyandrous, with the female often mating with several males who raise the chicks! Interesting behavior. Spotted Sandpipers lose their spots when breeding is over and are sparrow-sized, about 7.5 inches.

Another interesting behavior I observed from the kayak, was the sandpiper trekking along on top of the floating lily pads from which he snatches a beetle and a tiny snail.