Situated precariously west of mainland Alaska, St. Paul Island is frequently invaded by European and Asian vagrants. Misguided by fog or blown off course by strong winds, land birds seek shelter on this remote rocky refuge after finding themselves lost over the unforgiving Bering Sea. Unlike seabirds which thrive on the wind and waves, land birds are unable to rest on the water's surface, and must find something solid to perch upon. Bird fanatics, for lack of a better term, have caught on to this phenomenon, and pay thousands of dollars to spend several days on St. Paul, relentless searching for those prized species to add to their life lists. This snow bunting is by no means rare or vagrant, and is an abundant local breeder found throughout the colder reaches of North America. Still if, like me, you're from California, it's one to add to the life list. Not that I'm keeping track of course.
Canon EOS 60D, Canon EF 70-200mm f/4L USM + 1.4x, ISO-400 f/5.6 @ 1/4000 sec.
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