Column: These may be your least favorite birds to identify, but here’s how to make it easier

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 22, 2026

It’s been a while since I urged you to tear a book apart. Approximately 30 shorebird species pass through Maine every fall. Some are rare, but most are expected if you look in the right places. Separate similar birds into piles. Rip the pages out of your favorite guidebook and begin sorting. Once you’ve reduced confusion by tearing out the nearly-impossible birds, divide the remaining Charadriiformes pages into two piles: birds typically spotted on mudflats, and all others. The smallest shorebirds are the most troublesome, especially the so-called “peep” sandpipers. In conclusion: you didn’t actually tear pages out of your book, did you? ~ Bob Duchesne