Point Lobos State Reserve, Carmel, California, USA
Member of the Oystercatcher Family
§ A Parcel of Oystercatchers§
~true bird fact~ Oystercatchers have some tough babies. They nest in shallow bowls made of sand, small rocks, and shell fragments and their eggs are very hard and tough enough to survive being submerged during high tides. Once the chick is born, it leaves the nest after only a day. Young oystercatchers have been known to dive underwater to avoid predators, even though they cannot swim.
Smirky
Likes to shock older people with provocative behavior
Unexpectedly intelligent
Might be a witch
How endangered are they? While he's listed as a species of least concern by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, he is considered by a lot of people to be a bird of significant ecological and conservationary importance. There are less than 12,000 of these birds and they have a very limited habitat that they can occupy- that is rocky, tidal shorelines along the pacific coast of North America. They are considered a Species of Special Status by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. This is partly just due to their limited global range, but also has to do with how sensitive their habitat is to all sorts of modern problems like rising sea levels, ocean acidification, and (of course) people. Let's all do our best for black oystercatcher.
Bonus Fact: The Wikipedia Page for Black Oystercatcher does not mention specifically whether or not he eats oysters, even though they mention like 8 other things he eats. Comedic oversight or inaccurate name? You, dear reader, be the judge.
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