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Jan. 20th, 2004 08:55 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kayreSurprised myself by walking in the park this morning despite temps below my 20F cutoff. Couldn't resist the sunshine on snow, and I'm enjoying watching the river ice up. Saw a flock of black and white ducks; assumed they were buffleheads, but took a few pictures anyway. Then I noticed an oddball, a brownish duck among the black, and snapped a few more shots. At home I confirmed that there were in fact two of the brown ducks-- and then realized that the black and white ones weren't buffleheads. Their beaks were orange rather than dark gray, and the pattern of black and white was wrong. A few minutes later, I confirmed that the group was actually made up of common merganser ducks, male and female.
This made me laugh, since I'd read this gem just last night, in a description of this species: "Male mergansers, along with other ducks, geese, and swans, have the distinction of beng among the few birds with penises...Male usefulness in the continuance of the species does not extend far beyond their penises."
common merganser ducks
male bufflehead, for comparison
squirrel tracks
mouse track, about 3/4 inch across; the larger print is another squirrel track
The "secret stairway" up the bluff-- virtually invisible in the summer
This made me laugh, since I'd read this gem just last night, in a description of this species: "Male mergansers, along with other ducks, geese, and swans, have the distinction of beng among the few birds with penises...Male usefulness in the continuance of the species does not extend far beyond their penises."
common merganser ducks
male bufflehead, for comparison
squirrel tracks
mouse track, about 3/4 inch across; the larger print is another squirrel track
The "secret stairway" up the bluff-- virtually invisible in the summer
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Surprised myself by walking in the park this morning despite temps below my 20F cutoff. Couldn't resist the sunshine on snow, and I'm enjoying watching the river ice up. Saw a flock of black and white ducks; assumed they were buffleheads, but took a few pictures anyway. Then I noticed an oddball, a brownish duck among the black, and snapped a few more shots. At home I confirmed that there were in fact two of the brown ducks-- and then realized that the black and white ones weren't buffleheads. Their beaks were orange rather than dark gray, and the pattern of black and white was wrong. A few minutes later, I confirmed that the group was actually made up of common merganser ducks, male and female.
This made me laugh, since I'd read this gem just last night, in a description of this species: "Male mergansers, along with other ducks, geese, and swans, have the distinction of beng among the few birds with penises...Male usefulness in the continuance of the species does not extend far beyond their penises."
<lj-cut text="Pics back here">
common merganser ducks
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/mergansers.jpg" alt="common mergansers" />
male bufflehead, for comparison
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/older%20pics/Bufflehead.jpg" alt="male bufflehead, for comparison" />
squirrel tracks
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/squirrelprint.jpg" alt="squirrel tracks" />
mouse track, about 3/4 inch across; the larger print is another squirrel track
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/mousetrack.jpg
" alt="mousetrack.. the larger prints are more squirrel tracks" />
The "secret stairway" up the bluff-- virtually invisible in the summer
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/sekritstairs.jpg" alt="The "secret staircase" up the bluff... virtually invisible in the summer" />
sunset over Lake Michigan-- the vertical streak was awesome
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/sunset.jpg" alt="sunset over Lake Michigan-- that vertical bar was amazing." />
This made me laugh, since I'd read this gem just last night, in a description of this species: "Male mergansers, along with other ducks, geese, and swans, have the distinction of beng among the few birds with penises...Male usefulness in the continuance of the species does not extend far beyond their penises."
<lj-cut text="Pics back here">
common merganser ducks
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/mergansers.jpg" alt="common mergansers" />
male bufflehead, for comparison
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/older%20pics/Bufflehead.jpg" alt="male bufflehead, for comparison" />
squirrel tracks
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/squirrelprint.jpg" alt="squirrel tracks" />
mouse track, about 3/4 inch across; the larger print is another squirrel track
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/mousetrack.jpg
" alt="mousetrack.. the larger prints are more squirrel tracks" />
The "secret stairway" up the bluff-- virtually invisible in the summer
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/sekritstairs.jpg" alt="The "secret staircase" up the bluff... virtually invisible in the summer" />
sunset over Lake Michigan-- the vertical streak was awesome
<img src="http://www.fernblatt.net/kayre/pictures/sunset.jpg" alt="sunset over Lake Michigan-- that vertical bar was amazing." />
