This gallery is a collection of close photos of a juvenile Willet of the "Western" or inornatus subspecies. Some sources suggest that the Western and Eastern may someday be designated separate species, and so this collection of shots provides various views that display various inornatus attributes. The first group of pix were taken on an overcast day while the others on a bright day.

Roughly 30 pairs of Eastern Willets breed on Duxbury Beach every summer and a number of non-breeders are usually present as well. While individual appearances vary within the local summer populations, this juvenile is outside the bounds of the variation I usually see. All but one or two of this year's breeders & offspring have already migrated as of this date (9/2) and most have been gone since Aug 20. A September Willet always merits a closer look, but this one was suspicious from the git-go as from the car I could see that it was large, lanky, pale gray and in deep water!

These photos show a number of the characteristics of the Western vs Eastern. (Taken from several sources) Long legs. Longer, thinner bill comes to more of a point; also bluish near the base while Easterns may look a bit pinkish there (more pronounced during breeding). Overall color is light gray not the darker, brownish markings of Easterns, and there is little distinct patterning on the back and wing coverts of the Western. In flight, White stripe in wing usually wider and longer in Western. Wading in deep water (Westerns do that much more than Easterns - though I've seen Easterns do it here very occasionally). Couldn't compare calls as the bird was silent.