Long weekend. Part III

After our day at the beach, the final day of this past long weekend we decided to go to the Aguadulce Salinas (saltponds), 30 minutes to the west of Penonomé in Coclé province (central Panamá).  Of course, I went with my family, including my wife, daughter, sister-in-law and nephew.  We all were impressed with the huge flocks of sandpipers and plovers all over the place.  Only this flock, for example, had more than 200 Semipalmated Plovers!

I was a little bit more impressed with a cooperative Least Sandpiper that allowed me to approach closely.  Notice its diagnostic yellow legs.

There was a pond FULL with Black-necked Stilt, but alas, no avocets this time.  We counted more than 100 stilts.

But the star of the day was a dark-phase immature Reddish Egret that allowed great views by ALL the members of this expedition.  I was able to point out the differences, including the color of the bare parts, the slightly reddish tones to the head and neck, of course, the punk-like hair style that the bird exhibited for two seconds.

This bird is rare in Panama, and Aguadulce is the only regular, reliable site to find it... so it was indeed a great find.  We had an uneventful journey back to Panama City that afternoon, after a weekend full of birds, friends and fresh air!