Of ‘Possums and Pipits

I was birding Stratford’s water areas (ponds and sound) and stopped at Short Beach off of Dorne Drive.  I saw at first one, then four and eventually twelve American Pipits lurking and feeding in the grasses.  For no apparent reason, they would occasionally fly up circle about and land somewhere near by.

After watching their behavior for a little while, I sat down in an area where I thought they may return.  And in time, they did just that.  Of course getting a bird near you is only half the battle, the other half is trying to photograph a constantly walking bird with an equally constantly wagging tail.  But even an obsessive walker takes a breather now and then – and Click.  Just one of the nice poses can be found below.

Formerly  known for many years as the Water Pipit (which I confess I still call it sometimes), the American Pipit breeds in the Arctic and can be found migrating through or overwintering in Connecticut, like this bird is.

American Pipit - Stratford, CT - Scott Vincent Dec-30-2010

While sitting in the snow and mud waiting for the American Pipits to walk by, I catch a glimpse in my peripheral vision of an Opossum.  He/she wasn’t visible for long, but was entertaining to watch as it waddled over the sand and snow.  It was a nice extra to the good bird above!