Borden Wetlands

The lone northern flicker, pictured in the previous post, was indeed a sign that the seasons are moving forward. With warmer weather, the snow and ice had begun to melt. The warmer temperatures gave pleasant relief after the harshness of winter, but the Wetlands remained frozen.  Canada geese arrived in numbers. The geese paired up and the males stoutly defended what would be their nesting areas. The geese appeared determined to wait for the ice to thaw. Webbed feet are not well adapted for use on a sheet of ice. The geese's small talons provided little traction. Disputes between the pairs of geese were commonplace and usually resolved with a deal of posturing and honking. When resolve could not be found from the usual bluffing, things became physical and what followed appeared to be quite barbaric in nature. At first glance, these two warring geese appeared to be locked beak to beak, attempting to cause physical harm to their opponent, but on closer inspection of the photos, it be...

The Wetlands have presented a different habitat, and with that, some new birds to add to my list, such as the migrating rusty blackbirds that favour wet habitats. Another addition to that list presented itself on a dull October morning hidden among a group of mallards.  Groups of mallards are always worth looking at in a little more detail because their numbers occasionally hide other species. Another migratory bird. This male American wigeon was quite happy to dabble with the mallards, enjoying the advantage of safety in numbers. The American wigeon was not as comfortable with my company as the resident mallards. I again had to make use of a tree stump to hide behind for these photos, and thankfully, the sun broke through the clouds just at the right time. Another really overcast and dull morning in November saw two more male widgeons circling the wetlands in preparation for landing. Both males, in turn, displaying remarkable acrobatics as they cornered. The poor light did not ena...