F/ 6.3, 1/640, ISO 200.
Canvasback
What type of book has only characters and no story?
A telephone book.
Interesting Fact: A large diving duck, the Canvasback breeds in prairie potholes and winters on ocean bays. Its sloping profile distinguishes it from other ducks. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Canvasback/id )
F/ 5.6, 1/1250, ISO 400.
Mute Swan
What did the nose say to the finger?
Stop picking on me.
Interesting Fact: The Mute Swan is reported to mate for life. However, changing of mates does occur infrequently, and swans will remate if their partner dies. If a male loses his mate and pairs with a young female, she joins him on his territory. If he mates with an older female, they go to hers. If a female loses her mate, she remates quickly and usually chooses a younger male. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Mute_Swan/lifehistory )
F/8.0, 1/250, ISO 320.
Northern Shoveler ( Female )
How do you know if there’s a snowman in your bed?
You wake up wet!
Interesting Fact: Northern shovelers feed by dabbling for plant food, often by swinging its bill from side to side and using the bill to strain food from the water. They use their highly specialized bill (from which their name is derived) to forage for aquatic invertebrates – a carnivorous diet. Their wide-flat bill is equipped with well-developed lamellae – small, comb-like structures on the edge of the bill that act like sieves, allowing the birds to skim crustaceans and plankton from the water’s surface. This adaptation, more specialized in shovelers, gives them an advantage over other puddle ducks, with which they do not have to compete for food resources during most of the year. Thus, mud-bottomed marshes rich in invertebrate life are their habitat of choices. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_shoveler#Behavior )
F/9.0, 1/320, ISO 340.
Common Loon ( Nonbreeding adult )
Have you read the book about anti-gravity?
It’s impossible to put down!
Interesting Fact: The Common Loon is flightless for a few weeks after molting all of its wing feathers at the same time in midwinter. ( Common Loon Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology )
F/6.3, 1/500, ISO 200.
Red-breasted Merganser
Why do bananas use sunscreen?
Because they peel.
Interesting Fact: The red-breasted merganser (Mergus serrator) is a diving duck, one of the sawbills. The genus name is a Latin word used by Pliny and other Roman authors to refer to an unspecified waterbird, and serrator is a sawyer from Latin serra, “saw”. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-breasted_merganser#Behaviour )
F/6.3, 1/160, ISO 320.
American Wigeon
Why is it hard to play cards in the jungle?
There are too many cheetahs!
Interesting Fact: The American Wigeon was formerly known as “Baldpate” because the white stripe resembled a bald man’s head. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Wigeon/lifehistory )
F/9.0, 1/250, ISO 200.
Common Eider ( Male )
How are hockey players like goldfish?
You tap on the glass to get their attention.
Interesting Facts: Common Eiders appear to be monogamous, though males will display to females other than their primary partner. Pairs sometimes reunite in consecutive seasons. During periods of calm weather in autumn, males begin to display, both singly and in groups, tossing their heads, stretching their necks, and flapping their wings while keeping up a soft cooing. Pairs often copulate during fall and winter, well outside of the nesting season. ( Common Eider Life History, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology )
F/11.0, 1/500, ISO 320.
Ruddy Duck
Why do bees have sticky hair?
They use honey-combs.
Interesting Fact: Though Ruddy Ducks are native to the Americas, one population became established in England after captive ducks escaped in 1952. This population grew to about 3,500 individuals by 1992, and now appears to be expanding into the Netherlands, France, Belgium, and Spain. ( Ruddy Duck Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology )
F/10.0, 1/400, ISO 320.
Bufflehead Duck ( Female )
Why couldn’t the bicycle stand up by itself?
It was two tired.
Interesting Fact: They hold their wings tightly against their bodies underwater and use only their feet to propel themselves. At the end of a dive, they may bob to the surface like a cork. Throughout the day they alternate between bouts of feeding, swimming alertly, preening, and sleeping. ( Bufflehead Life History, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology )
F/9.0, 1/320, ISO 320.
American Coot
How do you get a squirrel to like you?
Act like a nut.
Interesting Fact: The ecological impact of common animals, like this ubiquitous waterbird, can be impressive when you add it all up. One estimate from Back Bay, Virginia, suggested that the local coot population ate 216 tons (in dry weight) of vegetation per winter. ( American Coot Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology )
