Black-necked Stilt

Black-necked Stilt -- Merced National Wildlife Refuge, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, ISO: 800, f/5, 1/1600s

Identifying shorebirds can be difficult.  That's one of the reasons you won't find a whole lot of shorebird photos on this blog.  If I can't identify the bird I generally won't show it here.  If I'm not going to show the photo I often won't even bother to take it unless I'm sure it's something I haven't seen before.  That's probably a bad attitude, but it is what it is.  Plus, I'm just not all that interested in shore birds.  Sparrows, gulls and warblers suffer similarly.

Having said that, avocets and black-necked stilts are beautiful birds that I never tire of photographing.  Avocets are sleek and graceful and black-necked stilts are just downright cute.  So, I bring you this photo of a black-necked stilt in all of its cute glory.  Indulge yourself.

Black-necked Stilt

Black-necked Stilt -- Merced National Wildlife Refuge, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5.6, 1/1600s, ISO: 640

I don't tend to get very excited about small shorebirds unless they're flocked together in large numbers.  I do enjoy taking photos of black-necked stilts, though.  They're easy to identify and are probably the cutest shorebird on the West Coast.  They're a challenge to photograph well because like egrets their white feathers tend to wash out.