A WALK ON THE WILDSIDE---PAUL FOSTER

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Thursday 9 February 2012

Onto St Kitts

                                      Common Ground Dove
                                               Gray Kingbird
                                            Greater Yellowlegs
                                 Blue Winged Teal were numerous on the saltpans.
                          Black Winged Stilt and a few White Cheeked Pintail.
                                   A solitary Greater Yellowlegs

St Kitts was another of the islands where we docked.A  short walk around the town of Basseterre was taken, before the girls decided it was time to head for one of the local beaches.A local taxi driver quoted 27 dollar return to Cockleshell beach and we were duly on our way.A journey of about 25 mins was endured passing numerous saltpans en route.I could only hope that one was within walking distance from the beach, as this would give me some opportunities to view and of course photograph some of the local inhabitants.It didn`t take long to settle in, as 3 sunbeds an umberalla and 5 bottles of the local Carib beer in an ice filled bucket were purchased,cost a princely 25 american dollars.Ah,this is the life, as I took the top off another bottle of Carib.With thirst quenched and the girls sizzling nicely,I was off to explore the hinterlands.I could hear various whistles and noises in the distance, which could mean only one thing,,,,birds.A small brackish lagoon was spied through the bushes.Numerous duck and Black winged Stilt were feeding in the margins.The duck I couldn`t ID immediately but the Stilt were unmistakable.A few long legged waders were probing the soft mud and a small Sandpiper type scurried along.Grabbing what images I could,I would be able to identify these when I got home.I discovered later that the majority of the birds were North American en route to their wintering grounds,I couldn`t understand why they had to leave the islands, as although it was winter here, the temps were 26 degree celcius and  plenty of food about what more could they want!!!I`ll again leave you with a few of the images I obtained whilst out and about with the camera.Pity that time was very limited and having worked up a thirst I headed back to the sunbeds and another bucket of iced beer!!!!

1 comment:

  1. your top shot with the little owl on the post - is stunning! and I love that yellow legs posted. fantastic photos! I look forward to following your blog~

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