Bangladesh Trip 18th Feb 2015, The Spoon-billed Sandpiper - Day 5, Part 2

Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Sonadia Island, Bangladesh
Photograph taken by and copyright Baz Scampion 

Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Sonadia Island, Bangladesh
Photograph taken by and copyright Baz Scampion 

Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Sonadia Island, Bangladesh
Photograph copyright Spoon-billed Sandpiper Conservation Project

Today, we were travelling by boat to Sonadia Island, off Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh in search of the rare and beautiful Spoon-billed Sandpiper.

Sonadia Island, Bangladesh

Photograph taken and copyright Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig with Cameraman Abu Sayed Sumon on the way to Sonadia Island, Bangladesh

Photograph taken and copyright Helena Craig

As Foysal was understandably under time pressure to get the bird survey done, he had to take priority using the telescope. Even so, he was still great with making sure that Mum and I saw the important birds. He found three Spoon-billed Sandpiper almost immediately and showed them to me. Then he found another one much closer, and checked that I had seen the bird turning its head and saw the bill. He said that I needed to make sure that I’d seen the bill and was happy with my views! That was lovely of him, as I understood that he had time pressure to properly survey the birds. 

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig on Sonadia Island, Bangladesh

Photograph taken by and copyright Helena Craig

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig and group on Sonadia Island, Bangladesh

Photograph taken by and copyright Helena Craig

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig on Sonadia Island, Bangladesh

Photograph taken by and copyright Helena Craig

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig with Mohammed Foysal on Sonadia Island, Bangladesh

Photograph taken by and copyright Helena Craig

Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Sonadia Island, Bangladesh

Photograph taken by and copyright Baz Scampion 

Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Sonadia Island, Bangladesh

Photograph taken by and copyright Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig

I did try digiscoping another Spoon-billed Sandpiper using Mum's I-Phone, but I only got a couple of terrible record shots. You can tell from the gizz of the bird that it was a Spoon-billed Sandpiper, but that’s all. 

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig on Sonadia Island, Bangladesh

Photograph taken by and copyright Helena Craig

Seeing the Spoon-billed Sandpiper today was a dream come to and I can not think of a bird that I wanted to see even half as much. Now, when I talk about this bird and the project through being Ambassador for World Shorebird Day, I can do it from personal experience.

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig with Mohammed Foysal and Sakib Ahmed on Sonadia Island, Bangladesh

Photograph taken by and copyright Helena Craig

It was amazing to see Spoon-billed Sandpiper, which I could see its bill, and 2 Nordmann's Greenshank and I am grateful to the project and the team for letting me go. Mum and I saw 5 Spoon-billed Sandpiper, one of which was close and we got really good views of. Foysal recorded 19 birds in total on the same island. Foysal also pointed out a Great Knot as well as other more common waders for us, which are in decline there. It was a race against the tide...

Waders on Sonadia Island, Bangladesh

Photograph taken by and copyright Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig

About the writer

Young Birder Birdgirl Mya-Rose Craig on Scilly

Photograph taken by and copyright Chris Craig

Mya-Rose Craig is a 12 year old young birder, conservationist, writer and speaker.    She is based near Bristol and writes the successful Birdgirl Blog, with posts about birding and conservation from around the world.  She has recently been listed with the singer songwriter George Ezra and actress Maisie Williams from Game of Thrones as one of Bristol's most influential young people.  Please like her Birdgirl Facebook Page and follow her on Birdgirl Twitter