Today’s post is about an American Oystercatcher image I took in 2009 at Egmont Key in Pinellas County, Florida, and the story behind it.
Adult American Oystercatcher on the beach of Egmont Key – Nikon D200, handheld, f6.3, 1/2000, ISO 250, Nikkor 80-400mm at 400mm, natural light
I was taking the Florida Master Naturalist class at the time. Instead of taking a boat from Ruskin—which was about an hour’s drive for me—I drove to Fort De Soto County Park, which was less than 45 minutes away.
I planned to spend an hour or so photographing birds on the north beach with a friend from the class. Then we’d take the first ferry from Fort De Soto to Egmont Key to meet the rest of our classmates. The ferry got us onto the key before their boat arrived, so we explored part of the island and photographed birds, animals, and scenery.
I wore a brand-new pair of Mountain Hardwear pants I had ordered two weeks earlier. They were great for wearing in and out of the water. I already had three pairs and knew they dried quickly, felt lightweight, and had built-in sun protection.
While photographing the American Oystercatcher, I knelt on the sand for a low-angle perspective. I liked having the Gulf of Mexico’s waves in the background.
A few minutes later, I felt something wet running down my left leg. When I looked at my foot, I saw blood. I sat down, rolled up my pant leg, and found a ¾-inch cut on the soft part of my knee. My pants had a similar-sized cut right at knee level. I don’t feel pain as easily as most people, so I hadn’t noticed the cut until blood was running down my leg.
My brand-new pants were ruined. The bleeding took a while to stop. I immersed my knee in salty water, then rinsed it with freshwater from my bottle.
My day wasn’t going great, but I had wonderful photos of the oystercatcher.
There’s more to the story, but that can wait for another time.
Life is good.
Mia
I’ve shared this photo once before here on my blog and thought I’d mention that.
To view more of my American Oystercatcher photos please click here.
Great shot of the Oystercatcher. Sorry about your knee. I hope it heals quickly. Thanks Mia.
Thats a nice photo
Lovely photo, maybe one day I wills see an oystercatcher in person. New pants, that was and expensive first wear! Too bad clothes don’t self heal like we do!
Reading through the comments I am glad to hear that it was a shell which was the probably culprit. Love the photo you shared, and hope the rest of the day was good – despite the bloody start.
i was wondering how you cut your knee, too, but satisfied with the above comments. I look forward to seeing this bird in real life, those eyes…Glad you are okay. Like many , I am feeling cautious optimism regarding election results. Must be patient and wait until everyone’s voice is heard.
Great Title
Great photo
Great story
And you made me wish I was visiting Florida again like we did last year.
A shell will do it.
Have had my share of shell cuts. Did a lot of clamming, bay scalloping and oyster harvesting back then!
Dick, shells can be very sharp! I actually have a tiny arrowhead made from a shell that I found on the Chesapeake Bay decades ago, it looks delicate but it isn’t.
WOW! I’m sorry, but I’d want to know how did you cut your knee? Shell, glass, sharp object? What a bummer!
Great shot though.
I spent the better part of my life on the seashore, loved it until the sea level began to rise and we got sick and tired of the storms and hurricanes removing us from our house!
Dick, I believe it was a broken shell, I walked back to where I had been kneeling and could only see shells on the shore. My tetanus shots were up to date so I didn’t worry much.
I don’t miss the hurricanes. Not at all.