White-rumped Sandpiper (Part 2)

 White-rumped Sandpiper (Calidris fuscicollis) seen at Las Salinas, Nov 30

The White-rumped Sandpiper (Calidris fuscicollis) shown above was observed at the saltpans (Fuencaliente) on Nov 30, from about 09:15 onwards.

The next bird, also a White-rumped Sandpiper (C. fuscicollis) was observed on the same morning in an irrigation pond in Las Martelas (Los Llanos de Aridane), from about 11:50 onwards.

White-rumped Sandpiper (Calidris fuscicollis) seen in Las Martelas, Nov 30

Readers may recall from my previous post that on Nov 28, there were two of these Nearctic vagrants in Las Martelas, precisely in the same pond where the above bird was photographed.

Did one of the two sandpipers fly to an unknown location (possibly leaving the island altogether), or did it just move to the saltpans?

You would imagine that close examination of the various photos I took would settle the doubt. But, distinct light conditions, different angle of view, and varying distance from my subject make comparison tricky. I hope to find time to devote to the matter over the next few days.

Both the freshwater ponds and the saltpans provide suitable stopover habitat for this Transatlantic migrant, and my previous records of this species have been split more or less equally between the two sites.

So, nothing strange if one of the birds decided to switch location. But neither is there anything strange for there to be more than two birds on the island at the same time. There was an influx of about 50 birds on the Canary Islands in October 2005, with nine individuals recorded together on La Palma.