Stilts

I saw my first Black-necked Stilt in June.  Matt saw his first in July.  These are some incredible looking birds.

Their long, slim body is adorned in black and white plumage which is quite striking and fancy--like a little bird tuxedo.  They stroll around on these absurdly long, skinny, bright red legs.  Legs so long the birds got called stilts.  Its fitting, really.  When they fly their red legs stick straight out behind them.  It is hilarious and awesome to watch.

When we crossed paths with them in July they had little fluff-balls of chicks with them, too.  The littlest chick appeared to be walking on the surface of the water--though I am sure it was really so light it was balancing on bits of plant material floating on the surface.  It was so tiny!  Its remarkable how babies grow and change.  I mean, its hard to fathom that this little unobtrusive ball of feathers will someday transform into the sleek, leggy, beautiful adult wading nearby.  Of course, the same would be set of our small, red-faced, wrinkly human babies, too, I suppose!  Cute, exciting, and remarkable either way.

They're very cool birds, these stilts.