White-winged Scoter | Birds of New England.com

Photo by Chris Bosak
A white-winged scoter rests on the beach as a ruddy turnstone shares the area at Coastal Center at Milford Point on Monday, May 12, 2014.

The shore is a great place to find commingling bird species as shorebirds often congregate near the water. In this case, I got a ruddy turnstone and white-winged scoter together. White-winged scoters are usually found in large rafts off the coast. I’m not sure why this one sitting on the shore, but the shorebirds didn’t seem to mind its presence.

(Repeat text from yesterday:) With many of us working from home or otherwise “physical distancing” as we combat COVID-19, I figured I’d start a daily series of photos showing different bird species together. Why not? Maybe it will brighten somebody’s day to see commingling bird species each morning as we’re all stuck inside.

Photo by Chris Bosak
A White-winged Scoter rests on the beach as a Ruddy Turnstone shares the area at Coastal Center at Milford Point on Monday, May 12, 2014.

While doing my weekly volunteer shorebird monitoring at Coastal Center at Milford Point, I came across a surprise bird on the beach. A White-winged Scoter, usually a bird I see in the distance on the waters of Long Island Sound during the winter, was sitting on the beach with dozens of little (in comparison) shorebirds.

It was an odd scene to see the scoter resting on the beach as Ruddy Turnstones, Dunlin and Semipalmated Plovers scampered all around it.

Scoters are large sea ducks. Three types are seen along the New England coast: Surf; Black; and White-winged.

The day also included sightings of Peregrine Falcon (a young one sitting on the beach), Least Terns, Brant, American Oystercatcher, Piping Plover, Lesser Yellowlegs, and other shorebirds.