During a recent 10 mile weekend run, I spotted a very peculiar sight on the small lake at the Payson Golf course. Never before had I seen these large gull sized birds anywhere in Payson before, and there were dozens of them in one huge flock. Once I got home, and after getting cleaned up we took a trip back to the lake, and fortunately they were still there. Using my 10D, and 100-400mmL lens I was able to get fairly close to them and obtain some remarkable portraits.

Later on after pouring through numerous bird books, we found out that these birds were shore birds called "Willets" (Caloptrophorus semipalmatus) which are related to Sandpipers, and migrate frequently passing from California coastal areas through Arizona occasionally. We may never see them pass through our area again, and I am glad we were fortunate enough to capture images of them on this visit!