Sanderling

I walked around Bayocean Spit near Tillamook on Saturday. It's quite a walk, about four miles each way. I walked the ocean beach side first. There weren't very many birds on the beach that morning, but I did get some great looks at some Sanderlings.
I saw two flocks fly by and one of them decided to land just in front of me. It's great fun to watch them scurry along the waters edge looking for small invertebrates. They follow the surf out and then come running back as it comes back in. I used this to my advantage, positioning myself near where they would end up as the water came in and kneeled down low to be less ominous. Sure enough, they came in very close to me.
Shortly after a Western Gull swooped in and landed not far from the action with a crab in its bill.

One of the Sanderlings took interest and started to move in.

I inadvertently helped it out as I moved in by spooking the Western.

This gave the Sanderling its opportunity. While it showed interest and picked at the crab a little, it didn't start feasting.

Feeling bad for the Gull, I backed off and it eventually returned to the crab.