Birdapalooza

Well, what yesterday lacked in the way of feathered friends was more than made up for by today's visit to the pond. But before I get to that, a couple of reflection shots I thought came out pretty well:





The very first thing I saw when I arrived at the pond this evening was a heron flying toward the far end, which gave me hope that the place might be a little more lively than yesterday. And it certainly was: there were swallows skimming the surface of the water, crows passing overhead as they made their way to the woods, geese talking to each other, and at least one blue jay I think the kingfisher hired specifically to fake me out. The blackbirds were not only active but a bit more daring than usual, grabbing perches much closer to me than ever before:







The nesting pair of Canada geese I've been keeping an eye on also ventured my way in search of food—as in out of the water completely and onto the roadside not far from where I was standing. I crept as close as I dared, always remaining very aware of how much distance I had to cover to get to my car if the need arose:



After a while they returned to the water and swam toward where the very top of the beaver lodge pokes just above the surface. One hopped on up to do some preening, while the other first got itself wet:



And then dried off a bit:


So, yeah, lots of good avian photo ops today.



Oh, right, almost forgot—I did spot one other bird while I was there...

THE KINGFISHER!!!!

*drops to knees, raises both arms in the air with hands clenched into fists, and shouts "VICTORY IS MIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINE!!!!*