Living on the Edge

(from Oct 2016)
Down on the rocks near Troon harbour, I looked for seabirds – anything at all. I could see eider ducks, oystercatchers, cormorants and gulls – plenty. Then looking back into the sunlight, I just spotted a little movement on the flat rocks. A family of four little Ringed Plovers were ‘coorying doon’ out of the wind behind a wee ridge.  The strong sun behind them wasn’t going to give me a good shot, so I moved in a great half circle round to get the light directly on to them.

When about 20 metres away, I started taking images. From there I crept across the flat rock surface a metre at a time, always shooting a frame or two and waiting before the next move forward.

After a period of about 20 minutes I was as close as 6 -7 metres away. They seemed pretty tolerant of my presence. But then they wouldn’t give any warning of flight, they would just leave in an instant. My further progress was blocked by a deeper crevice in the rocks. I’d have to stand to negotiate this barrier – and standing up would certainly spook them.

So I sat there. I was looking at them and they were looking at me. It was like something out of trench warfare. The four wee birdies sheltering in their crevice and me hunkered down, keeping low. Any time they broke cover, I ‘shot’ them. They’d pop out for a few moments and then settle back behind their wee cleft in the rock. With glorious sunshine, and a stiff breeze behind me, the waves rushing onto the rocks to my left, other seabirds occasionally calling out, that old familiar view across the Firth of Clyde to Arran……. and my four wee plovers just over there watching me. I sat there for half an hour. It was a meditation.

Then, deciding the plovers were not going to do anything extraordinary – I mean there was no chance of a fight breaking out between these four – I decided to move off. Gradually retreating along my approach path, moving slowly and still keeping low, I left them to their Sunday siesta in that cleft in the rock.

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These photographs were taken at this time of year when the plovers had moulted. As time moves into spring their appearance of the adults changes with two black bands of feathers around their heads and necks. See this group below and the feature image – both showing the summer plumage.

These birds hang on round the coast of Scotland throughout the year, though many also migrate between Africa and Greenland. They make just a scrape of a nest on sand and shingle beaches, and produce 3 or 4 camouflaged eggs 3 times a year. I can’t help but think that a high percentage of the chicks are lost.

A few years ago I caught the one below doing a courting dance. I wish I could have included the female in the shot but it was too far out of frame.

The Ringed Plover is just one type of the many bird varieties that live on the edge of the land and amazingly survive year after year.

The other shots below show a Redshank, a Gannet in flight and an Oystercatcher

This post is a response to Patti’s Lens-Artists Challenge #269 – titled “On the Edge” on her pilotfishblog. I used the challenge to update an old post from around when I started this blog and, at the time, not too many people saw it. So I hope this meets the challenge and that you like the images.

Patti has produced a great post to introduce the subject with several ideas as to how “On the Edge” could be interpreted and if you like to check out her post you just need to click HERE.