Hooded Mergansers and Common Mergansers

Wow! What a day here at Lake Nelson. There seems to be a merganser convention going on. Looks like the happy little couple came back and brought along some friends. Chris has spent the majority of the day on the dock or in the windows just watching their antics.

I love this shot even though the ones in the back are blurry because I call it "The Leader of the Pack."

Is she giving him the eye or what?

I think this is the first time we've got a clear enough shot that you can see the eye on this guy.

Happy Loving Couple and a New Duck, The Common Goldeneye

There was a lot of excitement this morning. Mike usually spots new ducks first, but today Chris gave the "new duck" alert. We were quick to team up with the binoculars, field guide, and camera to try and identify and photograph her as a Common Goldeneye. She didn't stay as long as we would have liked, because she seemed to get frightened off by a woman who feeds the geese. She didn't come back at all during the day, but we're hoping she makes a visit again tomorrow. After she left, though, is when Chris spotted the happy little Hooded Merganser couple out there again, and who can resist photographing such a cooperative subject, so here they are again. Late this afternoon a female common merganser was out there too, but no pictures came out good enough.

Male Hooded Merganser

We haven't seen the female in two days.

We hope she is at the nest.

Impressing Mrs. Hooded Merganser

Chris took this photo with the new camera. It's very similar to a photo that won the GBBC photo contest last year.

Mr and Mrs Merganser

This pair of hooded mergansers has been coming by every day since the lake thawed. We are hoping for merganser ducklings in the spring.