Bird Calls Radio's New England Bird of the Day July 22

It’s Friday — finally! (One day until Bird Calls!) Let’s celebrate with one of my favorite birds: the American oystercatcher.

Oystercatchers are large shorebirds with huge orangey-red bills. The bills are colorful and substantial and used for prying open shellfish, such as oysters, hence the bird’s name. Oystercatchers arrive in New England in the spring and leave in the fall. In summer they nest along the shore and on islands near the coast. Their clear “wheep,” call, given repeatedly, often greets visitors to New England’s coastline.

Their eyes are pretty neat, too. I don’t think anything else has a yellow eye with prominent red eye ring? Pretty cool.

Be sure to check out Bird Calls every Saturday from 3 to 4 p.m. on WSTC/WNLK AM1400/1350 (in S. CT and nearby NY) or www.wstcwnlk.com from anywhere in the world (where there’s Internet access, that is.) Thanks for checking in.