Hooded Merganser male and female.

Happy New Year's Day. 01/01/2013.

I woke to find some crazy but very cool looking diving ducks this New Years Day 2013.  Very cool Hooded Mergansers.  There are about 3 pairs of them it looks like.  They are hard to spot since they like to dive constantly and don't dabble like most other ducks in the lake.  The males are black and white and the females are like a cinnamon color.  Many wood duck pairs have been hanging out for the last 3 months or so and the mallards came back too! Christmas Day the Canada Geese- same mated pair returned as they have always done year after year since before I lived here to make ready for spring to nest.  This mated pair most be at least 10 years old as I was told by a neighbor the same have been here since he has lived here.

The first pic is the Wood Ducks which have been common all these years but I don't think I ever posted these beautiful birds on this blog.  The male wood duck is the most colorful.  They look like as if they are painted.  The second pic is the Mergansers I just saw today for the first time.