Thanksgiving Refugee?

During Canada's long Thanksgiving Weekend a few weeks ago I went out to Esquimalt Lagoon and was surprised to see this bird, a domestic Muscovy Duck, strolling among the seagulls and swans at this bird sanctuary. Now I figure that he got wind of those meaningful glances and remarks about his plumpness and size that he overheard in the farmyard and decided that he'd skip Thanksgiving at home and spend it in a place where he could keep his feathers on.

Smile

While I've not done any rigorous content analysis of bird images posted online, I'm guessing that the most photographed birds are ducks. One reason is that, in North America, they occupy ponds in most parks and they are not particularly camera shy. But I suspect an even greater reason for their popularity is that they always seem to be smiling. Even a duck that might be considered homely like this Muscovy, wears such a pleasant expression on its face that it's a pleasure to look at. Makes me think I'll have to remember to smile more often.

Beacon Hill Park Children's Zoo

The Muscovy DuckAnother visit to the Beacon Hill Park Children's Zoo, which I visited previously to photograph the alpaca. We went to see the new litter of Vietnamese Potbellied Pigs, just about the cutest little critters ever. However I failed to get a good picture of them so you'll have to be satisfied with this Muscovy Duck which, despite its name, has nothing to do with Moscow. It was domesticated by Native Americans before Columbus arrived on these shores and, while it swims and feeds like other ducks, it also often chooses to roost in trees like a chicken. Stay tuned, I want to introduce you to the goats tomorrow.