Tag: Ruff

A Ruff was being seen in a flooded field off hwy 67 in Walworth County. I wasn’t going to go, but after I saw a photo of it on the rare bird report, I knew I had too. I saw a Ruff at Horicon a few years ago, but that was a nonbreeding male. When I arrived, there were a lot of people there. I parked on the side of the highway and got my camera on it. As soon as I was about to snap my first picture, it flew. I thought I had missed out. However, it flew and landed 25′ from my truck. I couldn’t believe it! What a beautiful and cool looking bird! Being so close to it was awesome! It flew a short time after that, and I watched it land in the farmers field to the southeast. I stayed and watched the numerous other shorebirds. About 15 minutes later, it flew back in, but landed way out in the muddy field. After a few minutes of foraging, it flew back into the water, on the far end. After a little foraging, it again flew and landed right by me. I watched for another 40 minutes or so, and by then light was fading quickly in the overcast sky. Images below are from the evening. Enjoy!