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Thanks to Twitter (which all you birders should get on) I was connected with an terrific article about Buff-faced Pygmy Parrots. These birds are amazing, small, exotic and hardly known by science and birders. The article, if you haven't clicked on the link, details the adventures of a one Gordon Buchanan stalking and filming for the first time these tiny birds. Buff-faced Pygmy Parrots are one of around 20 species in the Micropsittinae family of tiny parrots living on New Guinea and a few of the nearby islands.
New Guinea actually has a wealth of biological diversity the likes of which are not uncommon in near equatorial landmasses. The fact that seems most potent is that New Guinea occupies only 0.5% of the worlds total terrestrial land yet it has an estimated 10% of the worlds vertebrate species. North America is also home to around 10% of the worlds vertebrate species. This give you some idea of how dense all this biodiversity really is on New Guinea. 
The number of bird species is estimated to be around 650 and 700+, while this is fewer than whats on the AOU list for North America that number would represent a highly respectable year list for anyone I know.
Imagine being able to find this many species in such a small area? It's hard isn't it, because outside of a few places on this continent 100 bird days are relatively unheard of outside of migration. But where biodiversity density is high you are bound to find specialization the likes of which I don't find in Central Park. Remember there are 20 species of those tiny Micropsittinae on New Guinea and it's surrounding islands. So how did they manage to multiply with such diversity? Pure conjecture on my part leads me to believe that they utilized their physical specialization to exploit the equally diverse flora and habitats found around the island. So if you wanted to see a Buff-faced Pygmy Parrot it might not be as easy as strolling into your local stretch of Rain Forest and looking around. Instead you'd have to know what trees, fruits and microclimat the bird prefers and then know where to find an area like that.
In North America there are relatively few habitats choices in most regions. In Central Park there are even less, I can go to the Pinetum where there are lots of Pine Trees, or the Ramble where I can find deciduous trees and a good understory or to the Reservoir to look for ducks. Birding here is simple like a point and shoot camera:
It's easy to see birds of many species here in Central Park. In one May morning I've seen up to 80 species before work at 9am. Sometimes it's as easy as following another group of birder's binocular gaze at the Oven or Strawberry Field. This feat might not be possible in New Guinea as you would likely have to change habitats to get new species easily. I'm only guessing here that there isn't some small patch with 80+ bird species regularly occurring on it. In New Guinea Birders not only have to be aware of the identification points of the birds but, keen observers of behavior, habitat preference and daily movements.
Rather than the all you can eat buffet of North American Migration I could bird New Guinea like a connoisseur searching for a unique restaurant in Manhattan. Sounds fascinating and I hope you one day decide to get out there and try it!
Sandplovers have popped up this year on the East Coast with two notable sightings. These plovers breed in continental Asia and Eastern Europe wintering in Asia and Africa. Lesser and Greater Sandplover are like many other species pairs in that they have many plumage similarities and are generally separated by physical proportions. Thus it is necessary to have some knowledge of the species in comparison with not only one another but with shorebirds you are actually familiar with. The Lesser Sandplover has been identified several times before in the Lower 48 and actual has been documented breeding in Alaska. Nevertheless it is always exciting when a Lesser is found near to the bulk of the North American birding population! Such a bird was found this September in Virgina and was immediately given the tentative identification of Lesser Sandplover. And with good reason because Greater Sandplover is a MEGA for North America. In May a Greater Sandplover was found near Jacksonville, Florida. This bird represented the second record for North America the first was spotted at Bolinas Lagoon in Point Reyes, CA. This Florida bird was very birder friendly; it stayed several days and allowed photographers great shots like this one that my Brother took:
As I mentioned above; it is necessary to have some knowledge of the species in comparison with not only one another but with shorebirds you are actually familiar with. Fortunately there are great resources across the internet to link the Knowitalls with the people that need help. So now every digital-camera-toting-Sunday-afternoon-birder can wrangle a rarity without having to put in the homework that a WINGS tour guide needs. But I will bet that they guys that have found the Florida SP and the Virginia SP did know a good deal to spot it and properly document it. So even if you don't have the time to learn every shorebird in the world make the time to properly document a potential rarity with the same care you'd use to parse a Long-billed from a Short-billed Dowitcher. You may not be able to properly identify it in the field but you can gather enough info to ID when you get home and still impress your friends!
So If You think You've found a Sandplover.... - Take pictures if possible from multiple angles and in flight
- Watch it's behavior - How is it feeding, walking, does it call?
- Remember proportions count: Sometimes this is the hardest thing to document effectively and it is often the single most important part of the ID. Try and measure parts of the body against each other; leg length vs. tibia length, bill length vs. head width, wing tip projection vs. tail length etc.
- Writing all this down: it's just as important as getting a good picture. Chances are - and if you are anything like me - you'll think your pictures suck anyways
All this will help, so that when you are comparing 
your pictures you can actually find the important difference when you look back at a picture like this one taken by Allen Lamer.
Identification for either of these species will have to be documented with a camera to pass through state Rare Bird Committees. This is because they overlap in so many characters and there is no one surefire fieldmark. I should strongly caution this next section by saying that I have never done more than admire photos and read field guide entries on these two. Lesser Sandplover is the "cuter" of the pair with a more rounded head, smaller bill that has less of a point and the legs are shorter. Greater Sandplover has a bigger heavier bill, longer tibia and stronger facial markings and lighter colored legs. Both birds are similar in overall size to Semipalmated Plover and each lacks a white collar that wraps around the nape. Breeding plumaged birds, have a rich rufous breast and crown.
Above are your quiz birds. There is one of each and based on Bill Size, Head Shape and Leg Length maybe you can tell them apart too?
New Guinea actually has a wealth of biological diversity the likes of which are not uncommon in near equatorial landmasses. The fact that seems most potent is that New Guinea occupies only 0.5% of the worlds total terrestrial land yet it has an estimated 10% of the worlds vertebrate species. North America is also home to around 10% of the worlds vertebrate species. This give you some idea of how dense all this biodiversity really is on New Guinea. 
The number of bird species is estimated to be around 650 and 700+, while this is fewer than whats on the AOU list for North America that number would represent a highly respectable year list for anyone I know.
It's easy to see birds of many species here in Central Park. In one May morning I've seen up to 80 species before work at 9am. Sometimes it's as easy as following another group of birder's binocular gaze at the Oven or Strawberry Field. This feat might not be possible in New Guinea as you would likely have to change habitats to get new species easily. I'm only guessing here that there isn't some small patch with 80+ bird species regularly occurring on it. In New Guinea Birders not only have to be aware of the identification points of the birds but, keen observers of behavior, habitat preference and daily movements.
