A ruddy turnstone in breeding colors at Pillar Point Harbor. Here the bird is running across an exposed area of sand between the rocky forma...

A ruddy turnstone strolls through the sand in Pillar Point Harbor near Half Moon Bay, California. These birds are so stunning in their summe...

A western sandpiper feeding in Pillar Point Harbor on Half Moon Bay. It's a wonderful time of year to be out looking for shorebirds, sin...

Two sanderlings running away from the waves on Limantour Spit at Point Reyes National Seashore.

A black-bellied plover, in the middle of transitioning to its summer plumage, along the edge of the water at Pillar Point Harbor. Updated ca...

A black-bellied plover that is almost to its full breeding plumage. They are such stunning birds in their summer patterns, and it's a pl...

Two more shots of this very friendly black-bellied plover at Pillar Point Harbor on Half Moon Bay. As the sun was dropping lower in the sky...

A sanderling walking the water's edge on Limantour Beach, Point Reyes National Seashore.

I took so many shots of this individual plover as we spent over an hour together on the beach at Pillar Point Harbor last month, and I have ...

I spent over an hour with this single black-bellied plover as it combed the shoreline looking for a late meal. We were along the edge of th...

A western grebe swimming through striped reflections in Pillar Point Harbor near Half Moon Bay. This shot is from last November, but this is...

A black-bellied plover hunting for worms in the sand at Pillar Point Harbor on Half Moon Bay. There was surprisingly little in the way of bi...

Reaching into the archives after a busy week of traveling, here are two shots of a black turnstone in the intertidal area of Pillar Point Ha...

Southern sea otters are such a charasmatic species. They always look like they're having a good time, and those faces are adorable. Mo...

Two images of this male northern elephant seal displaying on the beach at Año Nuevo State Reserve. Not only did we find this lively seal to ...

A large bull elephant seal glancing my way at Año Nuevo State Reserve. This big bloke didn't seem to mind us being on the beach with him...

Intertidal zones are fascinating places to observe nature as they are constantly in flux. The intertidal reef at Pillar Point Harbor on Half...

The sky was gorgeous during our trip to Año Nuevo State Reserve earlier this month to see the elephant seals, and this shot doesn't do i...

A quieter moment on the beach compared with my previous post of this guy. Even though they are huge, I still think they can have the cute e...

One of the most fun parts of watching the northern elephant seals at Año Nuevo State Reserve is when a large bull decides to make his presen...