Sooty Tern, a rare visitor to TX

This one Sooty Tern arrived in Rockport, TX right when hurricane Alex was in the Gulf. For some reason this rare Tern has decided to stick around for a while. He hangs out in a Black Skimmer nesting area and is tough to find amongst all the other birds. I was fortunate to get some late day shots of him earlier this week. Needless to say he has all the local birders very excited. I couldn't find any other posts on this forum of this species, and of course it was a life bird for me too!

Awsome Miles

Nice work Miles.

Great job on the whites and blacks.

Matt.

Excellent exposures Miles! Nice color and clarity.

Nice to see you back.

Thanks Chuck, Matt and Brad!

Feels good to be back. Been busy taking photos for the newspaper and magazine down here. Had to share some shots of this Sooty Tern as it has never been posted here before. He only allowed me about 15-20 minutes before he flew off into the throngs of birds roosting in the area.

There was this one guy out there that day with a 500 and 300mm lens who had spent hours looking for this bird. Of course he packs up all his gear and left right before the Sooty Tern made its appearance.

He's a real beauty Miles....congrats on the find and the captures, they're all great shots.

Pretty thing. Looks like he let you get real close.

Great looking bird and some fine shots Miles. Perfect exposures, bringing out the rich colors of the feathers. Well done!

Thanks Sharon, Mitch and Steve!

Finding this one lone Tern was like looking for a needle in a haystack. There were thousands of Gulls, Skimmers, Terns and Herons in this one small area. I got lucky and spotted him sitting on a covered picnic table about 75 yards away. He allowed me to to walk slowly towards him, maybe to within about 20 feet or so. These are all nearly full-frame shots. The hurricane a month ago brought him in. This species rarely comes ashore, spending 3-10 years out in the open seas. His appearance in this particular spot has become quite well know in these parts, but spotting him can be difficult.

Congratulations on capturing this beautiful bird, Miles. And how well you did! I love the shots of him in the grass with all the pretty red flowers surrounding him. Really lovely.

Nicely done Miles, not only did you capture a rarity but you captured it beautifully!

Beautiful bird and photos Miles!

very nice!

Thanks Levina, Cameron, Mike and Bret for all the nice comments!

Great shots