Loafing Oystercatchers
Shore Birds
Figure 8 - Loafing Oystercatchers
The oystercatchers prefer to dine on oysters, clams, mussels, marine worms, sea urchins, crabs and other forms of marine life. The bill is laterally compressed and shaped like a double edged knife. It is used to pry shellfish and limpets from rocks. The chisel like tip of the bill is deftly inserted between the two shells of an oyster or bivalve to snip the abductor muscle that holds the valves closed. This is a skill that may take a young oystercatcher up to a year to learn from its parents, so parental care is well illustrated in the oystercatchers.
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