A Morning at Gooseberry-Birding and Photography

I have been going out to Gooseberry for a while before sunrise in order to get the different looks that each day may bring as the sun comes up over Buzzards Bay.  This day I picked up my friend and colleague Doug early so I could get there before sunrise and then we will going to spend the morning birding.
The colors in the sky started off with bands of light red into dark blue and then progressed into the reds as the sun finally rose.

The last two photographs were taken with my long lens


I did not get what I consider a full series of pictures of the sunrise, because swimming into view where a pair of horned grebes.  I went to my car to set up my 500 mm lens with the 1.7 tele-converter so that I could photograph them.  Luckily, the Greebes were not skittish and I was able to get down to the waters edge, and being low able to photograph the grebes.

Horned Grebes

After the sun rose, we started out following along the shoreline, observing and trying to photograph the birds that we saw.  On the east shore, where the water was smooth.  There were a few Sanderlings, an American Golden Plover and a few Black-Bellied Plover's.  There was the usual gulls, eider's and cormorants in the water at the tip.  Turning around the corner to come down the west side, the water was rougher with both swells and waves, and there were a lot more birds present, and they were more active.

Black-bellied Plover with waves

Black-bellied Plover

Sandrlings flying from rock - There is a Dunlin on rock

Sanderling landing

Sanderling Stand Off

Dunlin

A small brown bird flew from over the water and landed just above us on the land.  From the brief glimpse that we had, we were thinking possibly a Horned Lark or a Lapland Longspur.  On walking up to where the bird had landed much to our surprise, a beautiful White-throated Sparrow popped out in front of us.  It had brilliant colors, being that it was the white morph variety.

White-throated Sparrow - white morp

In the rough water, feeding and swimming were common loons, a red-throated loon, surf and white wing scooters.  Flying by was a nice flock of American (Black) scooters.

American or Black  Scoters