Saturday, January 23, 2021

Saturday Critters ~ 371 ~

 During our last visit to 
Lake of the Lilies
we did not see the Wood Ducks.
In fact, we did not see any ducks...where have they all gone?
There are usually at least 50 ducks, primarily Mallards, in the lake,
we did not see even one of the usual suspects.

However, there was some excitement...

The Hooded Mergansers have returned!


These are males.
They are small, bizarrely shaped diving ducks, with a large head and a small bill.
The males have large crests, that can be flattened or fanned.
According to my book, they are here year round but I only see them during the winter.

The Hooded Mergansers swim way out in the center of the lake,
I was not even sure these were Mergansers when I took the pictures.

Sleeping ducks, Lesser Scaups on the left, Male Greater Scaup on the right.

There was only one Mute Swan in the entire lake...


and a lot of beautiful sparrows in this tangled shrub at the entrance to the lake.


Sharing today's images with Eileen at 
Viewing Nature With Eileen 
for Saturday Critters

16 comments:

jp@A Green Ridge said...

So great to read about you seeing "Hoodies"! Although it is not their usual turf, I've been seeing them here at the. river!! We're too far North (or I thought we were anyway) but they are a delight to watch...:)jp

Brian King said...

We get the Hoodies here in winter and they tend to stay far from shore. They're beautiful ducks for sure! Isn't it odd how creatures just seem to disappear at times?

Marie Smith said...

I’ve seen Hooded Mergansers. Such interesting birds. Love those little sparrows too. I find sparrows hard to identify. There are so many of them too.

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

The Mergansers are so odd and fun to see! As always you took amazing photos....even the little birds are very sweet! Enjoy your weekend! We woke up to a few sprinkles. Hugs!

eileeninmd said...

Hello Debbie,
The Hooded Mergansers is one of my favorite ducks, I like their "crest". Cute shots of the Scaups tucked in and the beautiful swan. Great collection of birds and photos. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, enjoy your weekend!

Conniecrafter said...

Wow that is weird, maybe they switched homes for awhile :) Isn't it something how some like to stay close to shore and others are happy way out in the center. I love the sparrows sunning themselves in those shrubs, gorgeous pics!!
Have a great weekend!

Susan Zarzycki said...

I love your close-ups! You are so lucky to have a place to go where you can be reasonably sure to see something interesting to photograph! Here on the Island luck plays a big part in my experiences.💖

Adam Jones said...

I do really like those Hooded Mergansers.

Debbie said...

thanks susan, i am lucky in every sense of the word. i always see a lot of wildlife at this lake and also at home at my bird feeding station. i thought you had a blog, but was not able to find one. send me the link if you do, i would love to visit!!

Ruth Hiebert said...

Those Mergansers are fascinating ducks.

RedPat said...

Such great pics! You even make the Sparrows seem so special and they are creatures we see all the time.

Bonnie K said...

I love Mergansers. They look so elegant. Thanks for sharing.

Linda said...

Great shots! Thanks for sharing these.

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

Love the inmaes of the Hoodies Debbie

Lowcarb team member said...

You've got some great photographs here :)

All the best Jan

LeAnn said...

Amazing photos of the birds. I do love the little Sparrows. The photos of the Hooded Mergansers are beautiful and thanks for describing what they are like. I always love the ones of the swans. I do find that interesting you didn't see any ducks.
Blessings and hugs!