22 January

 eBird Data: https://ebird.org/checklist/S79711748

Weather:  8 am 0C. wind WSW 6; 1pm 5C wind NW 14.  Brilliantly clear.

Tide:  11am 4.3m, peak, falling

A simply spectacular morning.  Brilliant sun, cold, but nothing one couldn't dress for.  A hard white frost, flooded paths iced over.

The route via the "merganser pond" remains flooded, but subsiding.  


I think I'm being overly cautious now--I saw someone wading his way through this today, in shorter gumboots than I wear.  I've been a bit concerned that I might get bogged down, but he seemed to do fine.  Perhaps I'll take a chance tomorrow although I'm enjoying my longer route.

I know I posted a photo of a song sparrow recently, but these two belong in my "birds with expressive features" category.

First, the "sincere and pensive" shot--a bird you could trust with your last sunflower seed.


and then, the "what did I tell you?" shot:


..."you really should pay more attention."

Further along the path there were three very handsome varied thrushes.


The riverbanks were frosted, 



Further downstream, I've located one of the eagle nests. There are two, of which one is reportedly abandoned and one in use.  I've been monitoring both, and this morning there were two white heads looking up over one nest!!


And alas, by the time I got my camera off my shoulder, the heads had vanished.  (I started to write, "ducked down," but that seems unfortunate, given eagles' diets.)  Eagles have very good eyesight and I think they may have a sense of privacy.  I didn't see them fly, so I think they just --er--what else can I say?--ducked into their nest, probably thinking, "Sheesh!  Can't a bird have ANY privacy?!!"  I'll continue to monitor.  

The shore was riotous with wigeons this morning--great squeaking.  There were also green-winged teal and mallards, but the most noise came from the wigeons.


The shot below has a northern pintail in the centre, wigeons, and at least one green-winged teal (head down) at the left of the photo.


...There was a guy whom I see now and then in the Estuary, carrying optical equipment almost certainly worth more than I ever earned in a month.  He's finally condescending to talk with me and he has some good information about intergrade teals, etc...Oh well.  But he told me today, proudly, that he'd already seen 50 species that morning--travelling to find them (I managed what--32--walking in the Estuary).  He added that he felt he had to see 90 species per week, and still had four to go.  This guy is such a Twitcher!   I'd really rather do my daily check up on one location and notice how the foliage is developing and what is moving into the area and how the bird songs are changing.  De gustibus nil nisi bonum, I guess.

I made my way home to warm slippers.  It was a fine morning.  I'm looking forward to tomorrow.

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