An immature Bald Eagle making sure no edible morsel goes unclaimed. Bald eagles are more scavenger than predator, feeding primarily on fish that wash up on shore or, in this case, the ice. When they do make a kill, fish is the usual target but they will occasionally hunt other birds.

Cootes Paradise, Hamilton, ON.
 

A Northern Shoveler.

 

Napping is a grossly underappreciated activity, I believe. Here's a Northern Pintail who gets it.

 

Baby, is this winter ever gonna end? Look, I'll admit to being a winter guy. I embrace the cold and the snow and the darkness. Maybe not the wind, but, in general, I love it. At some point, though - like about two weeks ago - you have to concede winter's over and it's time to move on. Time to make room for the warblers, ospreys, flowers and warmth. (Maybe not the mosquitoes). I'm a spring guy now.

 

A Downy Woodpecker.

 

The power, beauty and grace of the female Mallard. Happy International Women's Day.

 

A Canvasback.

 

A young Bald Eagle practicing its attack skills on a minuscule scrap of dead carp.

 

Red-breasted Mergansers have THE best hair styles.

 

A White-throated Sparrow wading through the drifts.

 

Never more than a wing's length apart, this pair of Northern Pintails follow each other around the lake in a lovestruck daze. It's really quite heartwarming to watch them continually swooning over each other.

 

Northern Shovelers at take off. Shovelers couples stay together longer than most dabbling ducks. They hook up in the winter and stay together until the fall migration. Pretty good especially when compared with those randy little Ruddy ducks who don't bother forming pairs at all. Another interesting thing about Shovelers...when flushed off her nest, a female will defecate on her eggs to deter predators. Seems like a pretty crappy strategy but whatever works, I guess.

 

A Bald Eagle (immature).

 

Tundra Swans tend to be smaller than Trumpeter Swans. Another distinguishing feature is that yellow patch on their bill close to their eye.

 

Trumpeter Swans

 

Sometimes I wonder if Carolina Wrens ever regret their decision to spend the winter in Canada instead of going somewhere warmer. Like, say, Carolina.

 

A Mallard drake with a head that really can't be pinned down as simply 'green'. There's lots going on here with shades of grey, a variety of glossy greens, and even a hint of blue at the back. Sometimes, when the light hits right, you see more purple than anything.

 

An Eastern Screech Owl looking a bit like me before the first coffee of the day takes hold.

 

Northern Pintails are as much a treat to see in the air as they are in the water or on land.

 

A Northern Cardinal not letting a little thing like a blizzard mess up his good looks/hair.

 

An intimidating Tree Sparrow doing its best Hawk Owl impression. Probably PO'd that I wasn't slinging seed. Either that or the unpleasant weather was making him cranky. See the second photo for the Hawk Owl reference.

 

A Pileated Woodpecker female. Males have a red stripe in their cheek. The Pileated Woodpecker pecks holes so wide and deep they can cause small trees to break in half. It takes a big 'pecker to do that - these ones are 16 to 19 inches long. For comparison, the Downy Woodpecker measures about 6 inches.

 

A Canvasback doing his best wooing trick. This used to be my technique, too, until that thing with my neck flared up. Happy Valentines.❤️❤️❤️

 

A Northern Pintail hen under the watchful eye (literally) of her honey. Swipe for a couple of other views of her wonderful feather patterns.

 

My brown-eyed girl.

 

This Winter Wren was by far the peppiest thing I saw yesterday.

 

A drowsy Northern Saw-whet Owl doing some light maintenance/napping.

 

Had a nice escort along the trail from a couple of swans and their friends this afternoon.

 

A Northern Cardinal basking in the pre-storm glow.