17 Nov/16

Cloudy and cooler today, with a wind. -1 to +1 C. Went down along the river, and saw a couple of interesting things. A rather large flock of chickadees moved through the bush. I've seen groups of three or four, but this was probably a dozen or so. I saw some of them up close, so know they were chickadees, but I've never seen them in a loose group this big. Hard to count them, as they don't sit still long, but it was definitely a larger gathering than I've seen before. Also heard a couple of nuthatches that may have been moving along with the group. They were all just feeding the way chickadees do, but the size of the group was impressive.

Also saw three ducks on the river. Hard to make any sort of ID, as the glare off the river was in my eyes, but they were brown streaked. Probably mallards. Don't know how long they will stick around - the river is still open, no ice at all, and I guess as long as they can find food they will resist moving. Funny how bird behaviour can change. More Canada geese are staying around till freeze up, where (as I recall) they used to just migrate straight south. In Ontario, close to Toronto, some of them hang around all winter, as long as there is open water. Recently S. Ontario has been relatively mild all winter long, so the geese stay put. Why fly if you don't need to!

Posted on November 17, 2016 08:19 PM by mamestraconfigurata