Really red, Red Phalaropes

Red, Red Phalaropes have always been one of my most wanted birds. Having seen around 40 birds in Denmark and Greenland, none of them have been red. This year I had the chance to see the birds on their breeding grounds in Iceland. Arriving at their favorite pools, birds were found calling in the near vicinity. For the next twenty minutes a dream came true. 8-10 birds were noted in the area always being on the move only settling down for a minute or two before flying away chasing each other high in the air. I just placed myself at one of the larger pools and waited - the birds would come to me and luckily they did.

Unfortunately the weather was not all that great with clouds and very grey conditions but the pictures turned out ok, at least the id should be ok... 

10/6 Male Red Phalarope. Not quite as nice as his female counterpart, but still...

10/6 Male Red Phalarope. Often seen walking around on land.

10/6 Female Red Phalarope. It does not get much better!!

10/6 The pair doing their thing. I did not get any shots of flying birds but the all white underwing is really a nice feature.

10/6 Coming just a bit closer to check me out.

10/6 Easy to see who is in charge.

10/6 Red-necked Phalaropes are nice. But really, they can't compete with their bigger cousin.  

Red Phalaropes in breeding plumage are truely awesome birds and must rank among the best waders in the world.

RDN