Black Turnstone

Black Turnstones thrive along wave-battered rocky coastlines, using their short, chisel-like bills to pry loose barnacles, limpets, and mussels. In summer, they migrate north to nest in the damp coastal tundra of western Alaska, where pairs construct shallow ground scrapes lined with grass. Their dark, cryptic winter plumage transforms dramatically in flight, revealing striking black-and-white flash patterns across their wings and back.