Cold Storage

 1/250 sec. f/10 ISO 200

Ice Breaker III

This is the final part in my "ice breaker" series. I know it's warm enough in most parts of the country that people aren't thinking about ice, but I had to get this in to finish things off. If you missed the first two parts, you can see how a Canada Goose handled the ice (Ice Breaker) and then how a flock of American Coots fared on the frozen stuff (Ice Breaker II). All three of these sequences actually happened on the same day.

This time it's the regal Great Blue Heron. Although, he's not looking quite so regal while dealing with the ice. He was trying to land in the middle of the lake, but the weak ice kept messing with his psyche. I didn't use all the photos, just enough to convey the scene.

Here's the first attempt. And I'm pretty sure the third photo is the heron equivalent of being PO'd.

And the second attempt.

Now the third and final attempt after which the heron said enough of this indignity, I'm out! And I'm quite certain as he flew by I heard him say his Florida cousins could kiss his hiney!

Linking to World Bird Wednesday

Ice Breaker II

This little flock of American Coots decided to move out onto the frozen lake after feeding on shore. There was some slipping and sliding involved and then somebody broke through the ice which set off a panic in the herd. I mean, heaven forbid a water bird break through the ice into WATER. Like gazelles that had just spotted a cheetah, they bolted and semi-ran away from the scary hole. There was a big show of high-steppin' and wing flappin'. After making it to the "safety" of open water (huh, go figure), calm was restored to the herd. Crazy coots.

Linking to World Bird Wednesday

Ice Breaker

A pair of Canada Geese were cleared for landing and one touched down on open water, but this unsuspecting goose hit the ice. It must have been a big surprise, because as soon as it hit, it bolted up like a rocket! The second attempt was no better as it once again hit the ice and broke through. I didn't include the follow up photos, but after the second landing, the goose gave up and simply forced its way through the ice which was thin enough to give way under the weight. It finally made it to open water. Personally, I think this goose might have been hittin' the bottle during the inbound flight.

Linking to Camera Critters

On Thin Ice. Or Under It.

We recently had our first real ice of the season. I went to the lake to take photos and found much of it was covered in a thin layer of ice. It wasn't thick enough to support any serious weight, but it was enough to support the waterfowl and give them fits. In the photos, you can see the ripples of the open water versus the smooth surface of the frozen water. As I walked around the lake, I could hear the ice moving in the wind. It wasn't the loud cracking sound of heavy ice, but rather a high pitched noise. It sounded like a big flock of small birds all chirping at the same time. It was different to see the ducks and geese standing on the middle of the lake rather than swimming in it.

Most of the stumps, dead trees, and much of the shoreline were covered in thicker ice. The shallow parts of the lake were completely frozen over. I saw a few ducks as they attempted to land and they would hit ice instead of open water. Based on their reaction, I'm pretty sure they were surprised. I also watched in amusement as a coot, in one of the photos below, was "testing the waters" trying to figure out where the ice ended and the water began.

Now for the "or under it" part of the post. I came upon this dead fish in a shallow part of the lake that was completely iced over. I took the first photo and continued on. A while later, I came back and looked at the fish again and saw it was actually moving, hence not dead, after all. It wasn't moving much, but it was clearly still alive. I went on about my business and returned later to see three crows pecking at the ice where the fish was. One of the crows flew off, but the other two stayed until I got too close and then they flew off. In the last photo, you can see a hole in the ice above the fish where the crows had tried to get at their meal.