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Sunday, November 28, 2010

Hard Landings

I visited Swan Lake Nature Sanctuary several times in the spring and summer so I decided to see what kinds of birds it had to offer at this time of year. The Inner Harbor is hosting flocks of Mergansers - both hooded and Common, American Wigeons, Buffleheads and lots of Mallards. I didn't see any Mergansers, Buffleheads or Wigeons at Swan Lake but there were plenty of Mallards being very charming and tame. I wonder why Mallards seem to be so much more trusting than other ducks that reside in human habitats? As well as the ubiquitous Mallards there were some Ring-necked Ducks and some American Coots. But the woods surrounding the lake seemed almost empty of birds in comparison to spring and summer when the Red-winged Blackbirds and other songbirds fill the air with their chirps and warbles. Most of the lake was covered with a thin sheet of ice as in the photo above.

5 comments:

JoJo said...

Brrr. I didn't know we had red wing blackbirds in this part of the country. I haven't seen one since I lived on the east coast. And you're right about mallards. Never really thought about that before, but they are way more trusting than other water fowl.

RedPat said...

Lovely vista. That poor mallard looks a bit lonely - maybe shocked to see ice in Victoria!

Carola said...

I like your icy photos.

me said...

Hello! Did you use the same filter as the one above?

Benjamin Madison said...

Thanks all for your kind comments. Rio - no filter on this one, just a wide angle lens and a frozen lake surface. The photo "Water in Motion" is salt water, not frozen.