Oh no..another march through the woods and down the beach..well at least it isnt 90 degrees. Northern Wheatear? What the heck is a Wheatear? All I know its a mega rare shows up occasionally in the northeast and i am 45 minutes away. No brainer, climb in car go do the walk. Can't bird from the sofa, damn. With the memory of my death march down that beach for the snowy plover still fresh in my mind i take off. I hit the parking lot and a local birder, and an excellent one, Joe Brin is there. I had bumped into him on the way out for the snowy plover. He was about to head out, well at least this time I had company. We marched through the hills, down the dune and across the beach. Beyond the spot of the snowy plover. I am reminded its 2.5 miles out to the spot and outwardly smiling say yes I have done it before. This time I have brought 2 cameras, P950 in case its far and my trusty D500 with a 1.4 T/C and a 500 mm lens. In case its a distance away. We round the corner and meet up with another birder and he says its been hanging out on that log in the distance but he hasn't seen it in the last 20 minutes. Damn not again...story of my life. He works his way down the point as i chatter aimlessly with Joe about other birds and adventures. Joe has a scope and proclaims "I got it!" the words us bird photographers love to hear. There the bird is, doing I guess what wheatears do. Other birders show up..by boat..not putting in the miles that we did and i am immediately jealous,lol. I get some shots and a little shaky video . The walk back isn't half as bad knowing you got your bird. The exhilaration reminded me why I retired in the first place, passion for something you love. I used to bird to get away from the stress of everyday life. I would simply zone out-The meaning of ZONE OUT is to become oblivious to one's surroundings especially in order to relax. Those moments in time are like an addicting drug, you just keep trying to get more. SO find your thing and Zone out! Bird photography is mine.
https://ebird.org/lifelist?r=L16568672&time=life
The northern wheatear or wheatear is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae. It is the most widespread member of the wheatear genus Oenanthe in Europe and North and Central Asia. Wikipedia
Scientific name: Oenanthe oenanthe
Family: Muscicapidae
Size
14.5–16 cm
The northern wheatear is larger than the European robin at 14.5–16 cm (5.7–6.3 in) in length. The northern wheatear also has a wingspan of 26– 32 cm and weighs 17-30 g. Both sexes have a white rump and tail, with a black inverted T-pattern at the end of the tail.
Northern wheatear - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Northern_wheatear
