Black-bellied Plover
A black-bellied plover at the water's edge on a clear spring evening in evening. Shorebird photography is at its best in May, when the light is golden and the birds are all in breeding plumage, preparing to make their way up to the northern breeding grounds. Only the breeding colors reveal why this species is called "black-bellied", since at all other times, the birds are a simple brownish-grey, and one would be hard-pressed to find anything exceptional about them.