Long-billed Curlew, Badlands National Park, South Dakota
I have seen the Long-billed Curlew only along the coast in Southern California before, always during winter time, and it was a little bit of a surprise when I found them last spring in South Dakota. The Badlands have a lot of grassland to offer, with a few marshy spots here and there, and they are actually a perfect breeding ground for this large sandpiper. It is an uncommon bird and to my surprise we found them again a week ago at the same area of the national park. With their extraordinary long bill they are able to to reach ahead and pick up insects or to probe just below the surface of mud or soil. They also feed on burrowing wolf spiders in South Dakota, with the curve even matching the general shape of a spider burrow (source: sdakotabirds.com).
Distance was closer than last year but still not enough for an uncropped image. We watched them using the car as our “mobile blind”. In these wide open grasslands you have no chance to approach them by going on foot. There is also a lot of other birds and critters to watch and the last thing we wanted to do is disturbing any of them. Overall we saw five curlews and it was highly interesting to watch them foraging after their migration from the south.