The song was Snow and Ice… Not a lot was happening on or near the river in January. By mid-month the water was frozen. Here’s a little rundown of what remained on my hard drive.
On January 3, I barely saw a White-breasted Nuthatch. At least it was sunny that day.
Two days later, the only birds I photographed were Canada Geese by the Joliet Avenue bridge where there was some open water, and the Rock Pigeons on the Hofmann Tower. As I recall, it was too cold to continue,
On January 8, I saw one male Common Merganser. There had been a pair hanging out south of the tower last year.
There was more ice. Mallards banked on it.
The ice insisted on becoming a subject on its own.
A squirrel was climbing up a cottonwood tree with what looked like nesting material. The squirrels in my yard have been acting quite frisky lately…
There were a lot more Canada Geese north of the swinging bridge
Hanging out with the geese, I barely saw a Common Goldeneye, and then perhaps another male Common Merganser.
Back on January 13th, the same bird species, and more snow and ice.
Skip ahead to January 27 after a brutally cold and walk-less week, and it was still a challenge to find open water.
Mallards and the Common Merganser were on the ice.
Ice was still a subject on its own.
An American Robin appeared too cold to care.
And lastly, on January 29, there was a little more activity. There were four Common Goldeneye in the river.
Below is a closer look at a female Common Goldeneye…
Some Canada Geese were watching ice break up and flow down the river,
I caught another glimpse of the Common Goldeneye off the swinging bridge.
Looking back from Riverside Lawn, the ice still looked pretty solid.
Meanwhile on land, I found a hearty Dark-eyed Junco, a Black-capped Chickadee and a Northern Cardinal.
And then I spotted 26N, a tagged Canada Goose I had first reported in February of 2023. His certificate said that he hatched in 2015 or earlier and was banded on July 14, 2016. Given the scope of bird flu, he’s a real survivor. He appeared to be moving a little awkwardly but he might have been sliding around walking in the shallow, icy river. I hope to see him again.
I will be back on the river trail this week, as we warm up somewhat. The forecast is a cloudy one. The weather might be a lot less surprising than the news for a while.
It is nice to see some open water on the river, as well as the mergansers and goldeneyes taking advantage of it. I enjoyed the Common Goldeneyes in flight. Spring is only 2 months away.
Thanks, Bob. The river was flowing this morning with only a few chunks of ice left on the banks. And the cardinals are singing.
That goose has done well. A great header picture on this post. Just reading the post made my fingers feel very cold. Well done for getting out.
We were spoiled by a warmup recently, but now we are plunging back into the cold. I liked the header photo too. I have to hand it to the Canada Geese, they try to keep things interesting.