oystercatchers
Black-and-white shorebirds
Oystercatchers are stocky shorebirds with long orange-red bills, found on coastlines worldwide.
Despite the name, they feed mainly on mussels, clams, and other bivalves rather than oysters, using their chisel-like bills to pry open shells or hammer through them.
They're noisy birds with distinctive piping calls.
Coastal avian foragers
- sandpipersSmall probing shorebirds
- ploversShort-billed coastal waders
- curlewsLong-billed migratory shorebirds
- godwitsLong-billed shorebirds
avocets · stilts · turnstones · lapwings · waterbirds · wading · migration · wetlands
Aquatic creatures with exoskeletons
- mollusksSoft-bodied invertebrates, often shelled
- musselsEdible marine bivalves
- cocklesSmall ribbed bivalves
- limpetsRock-gripping sea snails
clams · oysters · bivalves · probing · prying · hammering · chisel · specialized
Land-water boundary
- beachSandy waterside margin
- estuaryTidal mixing zone
- tidelineShore's flood boundary
- seashoreOcean's edge
rocky · intertidal · tidepools · mudflats · sandflats · coast · littoral · strandline
Of or concerning birds
- ornithologyScientific study of birds
- plumageBird's complete feather coat
- feathersBird's lightweight covering
- beakHorny avian mouthpart
nesting · eggs · fledglings · flight · species · conservation · birdwatching · binoculars
shorebirds
Coastal avian foragers
- sandpipersSmall probing shorebirds
- ploversShort-billed coastal waders
- curlewsLong-billed migratory shorebirds
godwits · avocets · stilts · turnstones · lapwings · waterbirds · wading · migration · wetlands · marshes
shellfish
Aquatic creatures with exoskeletons
- mollusksSoft-bodied invertebrates, often shelled
- musselsEdible marine bivalves
- cocklesSmall ribbed bivalves
limpets · clams · oysters · bivalves · probing · prying · hammering · chisel · specialized · technique
shoreline
Land-water boundary
seashore · rocky · intertidal · tidepools · mudflats · sandflats · coast · littoral · strandline · barnacles
avian
Of or concerning birds
- ornithologyScientific study of birds
- plumageBird's complete feather coat
- feathersBird's lightweight covering
beak · nesting · eggs · fledglings · flight · species · conservation · birdwatching · binoculars · ornithologist
black-and-white
Without color gradations
distinctive · bold · contrast · markings · pied · coloration · bright · legs · pink
- shorebirdssandpiper, sandpipers, plover, plovers, curlew
- South American CoastHumboldt Current, sea lions, penguins, anchovies, fishing industry
- tidal flatsmudflat, mudflats, tidal flats, silt, mud
- shell-eaterssea otters, walruses, eagle rays, nurse sharks, wolffish
- Wadden Seatidal flats, mudflats, salt marshes, harbor seals, grey seals
- birdsrobin, crow, eagle, owl, duck