[Steve_E]

These birds summer in northern Canada and Alaska and migrate to South America for the winter. They travel mainly through the central regions of North America to get there so I was both surprised and happy to come across one of them here on the Atlantic coast. As I made my crawl toward a group of Willet I quickly noticed the long thin bill on this bird and slowly worked to get closer. Wherever the Willet moved the Godwit stayed right with them. It was interesting to see a bird use a group of another species to try and blend in. After about 45 minutes of crawling in pursuit the birds finally realized I was no real threat and relaxed. The Godwit stayed very close to the Willet making it difficult to get an isolated shot but eventually it wandered far enough away from the others. I've included a shot with a Willet along side the Godwit to show the similarity and differences between the two. This was the only Hudsonian Godwit I saw all year and the first I've ever photographed. Unfortunately it's unlikely I'll ever see one in full breeding color. During that time the male's entire belly is the rust color you see a bit of in these shots.

Willet on right in first shot.

Canon 1D Mark II / 500L / Skimmer II Ground Pod

Steve