Messing Around and Finding Out
Sharing is Daring
The whimbrels in this area share a 200-yard beach with a gull colony and a flock of black oystercatchers. This works out well for the whimbrels, as their choice of prey (mole crabs) doesn’t overlap with the other shorebirds. As a result, there isn’t a need for the whimbrels to rush to the beach in the morning to claim territory. They are the kings of the long-billed sandpipers on this stretch of the California coast and no shorebird has sought to challenge that title over the last five months.
However, on this morning, while the calming blue hues of the pre-dawn sky gave way to the warming rays of twilight, three marbled godwits were the first to arrive on the beach. The timing is suspicious. It’s possible the birds were unaware that this stretch of beach already has a resident mole crab sand-piping shorebird that doesn’t like to share. It’s also possible that the intruders were staking a claim before others could arrive. If that’s the case, get your popcorn ready.
The first group of whimbrels arrived as usual, about 10 minutes after sunrise. Interestingly, the group ignored the 195 yards of open beach and landed next to the marbled godwits. Yeah, that’s a message. For two minutes, six birds from two different species probed the same 20 x 20-foot plot of land in peace. And then, as was likely destined to happen, a marbled godwit caught a crab.
One member of the whimbrel clan stared at the godwit almost in disgust before bursting into a charge. In a show of both deference and defiance, the godwit immediately jumped to avoid the charging bird and flew all of six feet away. The building tension in the air is of the type that beings of all species can feel. Feathers are going to fly free today.
Actions Have Consequences
It’s inspiring to find an individual that will take a stand, that will be the resistance, that will insist on change. The marbled godwit, rebellious as ever, strikes all of those chords. With its back turned to the leader of the whimbrels, the bird resumes probing for crabs as though no skirmish had ever occurred. The bird’s disregard of the whimbrel’s demand seems to project an attitude that says, “I’m staying on this beach. Get over it.”
The whimbrel had yet to resume feeding. Instead, the bird fixed its eyes on the marbled godwit that continued to feed with a calmness and an arrogance that would ignite anger in the most docile of beings. Two warnings sent, both largely ignored. Something had to be done. Before anyone could truly process the events, an enraged whimbrel in mid-sprint had already closed by half, the distance to a dismissive marbled godwit. A marbled godwit that messed around…and found out.
