On Seeing A Pair Of Turnstone Poem by Francis Duggan

With blotched brown uppers and undersides light gray
They feed on sea weed beaches all the day
Some times in pairs or small flocks though seldom one alone
These little wandering birds called Turnstone.

The little birds with the flesh coloured feet
Turn over stones and pebbles in search of invertebrates they eat
And this explains the only reason why
The name of Turnstone people know them by.

They come from cold north Countries miles away
And in Australia just a few months stay
They build up strength before they take to wing
And fly to breeding grounds in northern Spring.

In South Gippsland in Cape Paterson by the sea
So many miles from their home territory
Sixteen thousand kilometres or more
From Southern Lands up to the Artic Shore.

From Northern Shore where Polar Bear roam free
To South Pacific land of Roo and Wallaby
Back to the North Atlantic from the Southern Hemisphere
The Turnstone makes the journey twice a year.