{"id":22574,"date":"2015-04-24T05:55:10","date_gmt":"2015-04-24T11:55:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=22574"},"modified":"2025-06-09T11:55:25","modified_gmt":"2025-06-09T16:55:25","slug":"a-marbled-godwit-surprise-on-antelope-island","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2015\/04\/24\/a-marbled-godwit-surprise-on-antelope-island\/","title":{"rendered":"Marbled Godwit Surprise on Antelope Island"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"MarbledMarbled Godwit and friends at Fort De Soto County Park – Nikon D200, handheld, f6.3, 1\/750, ISO 160, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400mm, natural light
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

On the 17th of April I did a post on Marbled Godwits because they are migrating through Utah now to get to their breeding grounds and on that post I mentioned that I saw them often on their wintering grounds in Florida like the foraging Marbled Godwit above that I photographed in a tidal lagoon at Fort De Soto County Park<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Quite often the flocks would number 50 or more in one location. In Florida I was able to get close to these shorebirds but more often than not if I just laid still they would approach me. Sure, I got wet and muddy but it was worth it.<\/p>\n

\"MarbledMarbled Godwit at Farmington Bay – Nikon D200, f8, 1\/750, ISO 250, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

In October of 2010 while photographing birds in the shallow waters of Glover Pond near Farmington Bay a Marbled Godwit seemed to just drop down out of the sky in front of me and the bird was at close range.<\/p>\n

At first I thought the godwit might be sick because it was late in the year and we had been having issues with botulism but on further thought I believe this was simply a young bird that was migrating to wintering grounds a touch later than the other godwits.<\/p>\n

It drank water, ate and appeared healthy and I checked eBird and see that it isn’t all that unusual to see them in October according to the data submitted.<\/p>\n

This was as close as I had been able to get to a Marbled Godwit here in Utah until four days ago.<\/p>\n

\"MarbledMarbled Godwit on Antelope Island State Park – Nikon D810, f8, 1\/800, ISO 400, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Four days ago while photographing a Willet and gulls in the White Rock Bay area of Antelope Island<\/span><\/a> I saw a big shorebird flying in and suspected that it was a Long-billed Curlew so I trained my lens on the bird and before it landed I realized it was a Marbled Godwit.<\/p>\n

It flew in close and walked up close several times so I was able to get a nice series of images of this godwit in a grassland habitat.<\/p>\n

Marbled Godwits do breed in grasslands north of here and I have seen them at Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge but in or near the water. These images are my first of a godwit in a grassy environment.<\/p>\n

I was surprised to see this Marbled Godwit on the island but over the years I have learned to expect the unexpected whenever I am out photographing birds!<\/p>\n

Life is good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a><\/span> to see more of my Marbled Godwit photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I was surprised to see this Marbled Godwit on the island but over the years I have learned to expect the unexpected whenever I am out photographing birds! <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":148068,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[511,27,1022,697,25,704,88,26],"tags":[4004,5229,5132,11978,4040,4136,3575,2546,3945,4038,9070,3997,4163,4419,3975,274,4140,3996],"class_list":["post-22574","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-antelope-island-state-park","category-avian","category-davis-county-utah","category-farmington-bay-wma","category-florida","category-fort-de-soto-county-park","category-marbled-godwits","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-coast","tag-coastal","tag-desert-island","tag-feeding","tag-foraging","tag-freshwater","tag-godwit","tag-godwits","tag-grasslands","tag-island","tag-lagoon","tag-limosa-fedoa","tag-marbled-godwit","tag-shorebird","tag-shorebirds-2","tag-tidal-lagoon","tag-water"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t