Waterfowl, Waterfowl, and more Waterfowl

With cold weather birding comes the invasion and challenge of identifying waterfowl. At first glance, waterfowl seem to be an easier subject than the flighty warblers of spring.  After all, there's no such thing as "Waterfowl Neck".  I've written before about the wonders of waterfowl so I won't go into them here.  Well, I will because I can't help myself.

The waterfowl that breed in the tundra make their way down to the rest of the US during the winter.  While some birds have their favorite spots and refuges, storms and strong winds mean that the possibility of a rarity exists in a variety of spots.  This winter has yielded a variety of types of waterfowl.  I got a Tundra Swan (a lifer) that was hanging out with some Mute Swans and a Trumpeter a few days later.  Which means that I've gotten 3 kinds of swans in as many days.  The only thing left would be a Whooper Swan but that's a real rarity.  As only 2 records of Whoopers in New England according to ebird, I am not going to press my luck.

Still seeing the variety of waterfowl makes me happy.  While they don't bring warmer weather with them, they do provide a great amount of color for the season and excellent practice!  So go out there and enjoy some waterfowl!  Watch the DUCKumentary if you haven't yet!  In the end, get outside and go birding!

4 Canvasbacks in the Quinnipiac River

Some Canada Geese Flying Overhead

Couple of Ring-Necked Ducks and Domesticated Greylag Geese

2014 Year List: 105
Notable Year Birds:
Tundra Swan *Life Bird*
Horned Lark
Iceland Gull
Surf Scoter

A Good Start to January

So I set some lofty goals for 2014.  After 5 days, I have seen about 69 birds and I can't believe how strong by start has been.  I've gotten some great birds!  First was some great looks at a local snowy owl that's been showing off blocks from downtown New Haven.  I've had a real wealth of owls this year.  Snowy, Great Horned, Screech, and Barred have all found a place on to my year list.  I feel very lucky to have shared some space with this birds.  Definitely feeling the unicorn effect when it comes to these birds.

To start the year off, I've included some pictures of the Snowy Owl I got to see a few days ago.  The bird gave us great looks and we left it alone after a while.  After walking out onto a great pier and braving the wind, we noticed that the Snowy Owl was no more than 15 feet from the car.  Seeing such a beautiful bird is such an amazing experience.  After enjoying the bird, we quickly packed up and left.  We didn't want to alarm the several gulls and other birds in the harbor to see and then bother the Snowy Owl.

The Owl was hiding right by the parking lot

There's something going on with his eye, any ideas?

Life List: 327 (73 to go!)
CT Year List: 69 (156 to go!)
Goal Birds: None