The Birds FINALLY Came with the Cold

I took five shots at our pond this year. 2 Canada geese and 3 ringnecks. I mean it was a brutal year. Went out yesterday and there must’ve been 60 - 70 ducks on the pond including gadwalls, widgeons, pintails (which I’ve never seen on there), mallards, redheads, and ringnecks. A smorgasbord.

Seems like they need to align the season with the weather!

Think they align seasons with migration patterns. Sometimes it works, sometimes not. I believe migration patterns have shifted more to where they can find food, shelter, etc.

This!

I heard a white wing dove this morning in the back yard for the first time ever.

Heck, everything frozen here now. Birds are going to have to hit the coast to find open water.

As it goes every year

I guess the ice eaters in the flooded corn fields can't keep up with the cold weather up the line.

Apparently you've never owned an ice eater.

great thing about having a deep pond - unless the cold comes after the season that is.

Found a dead gadwall in the hole I broke open on the pond for the horses. I wonder what killed it?

Must've been 300 birds in the open water on our pond Saturday (maybe 1/3 acre hole) - widgeons, canvasbacks, redheads, pintails, mallards, ringnecks, buffleheads (had never seen one until then) - might even be missing one. Did get to see a few try to land on the ice

1 Feb of each year the flooded fields are drained, so they can get the land dried out for replanting.