Where there is water, there are birds

 Open water is a significant attraction for many species of birds, especially at this time of year. Just like humans, birds need water to drink, if nothing else. Of course the term 'waterfowl' implies the importance of water to that group, and many open water areas in wetlands and rivers are a great place to find concentrations of them. With the current cold weather, areas of open water are very limited, not surprisingly. The warm water outlet along the Thames River, on the downstream side of Chatham, is very popular with various water birds. I've made several visits there over the past few days. 

 Certainly Mallards are by far the most common, with typically more than a hundred of them in the area.

 Of course with the warm water flowing into the river, it is also attractive to small fish, and that turns out to be a food source for ducks. In spite of the fact that many ducks are primarily vegetarians, when they are hungry enough any source of food and protein is important. I've even seen Canada Geese gobble down the occasional fish!

There is a small number of American Black Ducks, closely resembling a female Mallard but darker and with a greenish, rather than orangey, bill.

A few domesticated Mallards are present, showing a mix of normal Mallard colours but often with patches of white, since they may have hybridized with domestic white Pekin ducks.

One of the most colourful of our native ducks is the male Wood Duck. A pair of Wood Ducks has been present most of the time.

The female woodie is less vibrantly coloured.

There is at least one female Hooded Merganser, the smallest of our three native merganser species, usually around. In the second photo, there is a Mallard close by, giving an idea of scale.

A female Common Goldeneye has been hanging out as well.

Of course there always seems to be a large number of Canada Geese around. Some are on the ice, but a majority of the several hundred individuals can often be seen on the snow-free grassy river slope across the river.

A few gulls may be around, but not always. This next bird is a Herring Gull. A much rarer Iceland Gull has been seen from time to time.

Where there are concentrations of waterbirds, predators of waterbirds may be around waiting for an opportunity to pounce on some unsuspecting or weakened individual. I have seen an immature Bald Eagle, shown next in the trees across the river from this patch of open water, as well as a full adult Bald Eagle flying through or perched nearby.

On a much smaller scale of open water, are some large ditches which are fed by springs. One such ditch just south east of Blenheim often has one or two Wilson's Snipe present, their long bills probing the unfrozen muddy bottom for some morsel.

A little more unusual for the location, is this Northern Mockingbird. It shows up from time to time, and while it likely is feasting on some berries in the nearby bushes, it will come to the water for an occasional drink.

Right nearby where the mockingbird was, this Red-bellied Woodpecker was found. It probably had nothing to do with the water in the ditch, but was more interested in the woodlot close by.

A day or so ago I decided to roam around the former Dover Township, northwest of Chatham. There really isn't any open water readily available given all the cold and snow, so this departs somewhat from the open water theme above. With the landscape almost entirely covered by snow, I really wasn't expecting to see any Snowy Owls. I expect more than one of them saw me, however. But it was still very much a worthwhile time to roam around. I managed to get a few distant photos of a coyote scampering across a field. Being hunted as much as they are, I suspect they are very wary of any vehicle that stops. This individual was probably at least 500 metres away, and although it kept loping farther and farther away, it would stop from time to time and look around. The light wasn't the best angle with the bright sun bouncing off the snow; these are highly cropped.

Another highlight of my roaming around that day was encountering this Merlin perched in a tree. It was a little leery of me stopping the vehicle and pointing something out the window at it, and I only got three or four photos.

I am quite sure that this is the first time I have ever photographed a Merlin!

Closer to home, a periodic walk through Paxton's Bush shows that the resident Great Horned Owls are still around. I'm not sure where they are going to nest this year, as the tree stub they started with in 2020, is not available to them. In case you missed it, you can read up a bit about last year's saga by checking out this. Nonetheless, the owls are still here, although this first photo shows three birds.

Given how close it is to the beginning of the nesting season, and how territorial this species can be, I was a little surprised to see three birds so close together. Presumably the third one might be offspring from last year, and may be learning the ropes for its future activities. Marie and I go for somewhat regular walks to Paxton's Bush, and we will be keeping an eye out for the whereabouts of this nesting location.