What a beautiful morning for a walk on the beach! Clear skies, a cool breeze, and the peak of shorebird season. I decided to check the sand and mudflats at low tide at Popham Beach State Park in Phippsburg this morning. Usually, terns congregate in large numbers to roost and feed young here, but this has been a very bad year for tern productivity. Lots of nest failed, and it seems a lack of nearshore baitfish is to blame. As I rounded the point, to take a look at the shoreline of the Morse River, a small flock of Least Sandpipers cames whirring in overhead. Joining some of their brethern and a few Semipalmated Sandpipers on the shore, I carefully scrutinized the birds through my spotting scope to determine their age, and to make sure no similiar-looking vagrants had dropped in. As I stood there, more and more birds, of about half a dozen species slowly filtered in as the now incoming tide slowly but surely filled the back bays. Shorebirds watching is all about timing - many places, such as Popham Beach are only in prime time for a short period as the tide ebbs and flows. Today, my timing was a bit off. Just as things were getting good, and more and more birds were arriving, I had to fold up the tripod and head back to move my car out of the road! Then, by the time I had made it to my next spot, Wharton Point in Brunswick, the tide had completely filled in the mudflats there. So, I figured now was as good as a time as any to show up for work!