Overcast and warmer. Temperatures made it to the upper 40s. Light to moderate wind.
Today’s outside time was an afternoon walk.
I walked down Degroff Street. Along the way I stopped to make observations of multiple lichens on a rock that was part of a rock wall alongside the sidewalk. I’ve walked by this spot many times before, but hadn’t really taken the time to notice much of what was growing on the rocks.
Swan Lake remains almost entirely covered in ice. However, I enjoyed seeing three Ring-necked Ducks in the small bit of open water near the inflow from Wrinkleneck Creek. I sat down to watch, and get some photos.
Most of the time I was there, they spent on the edge of the ice resting. I wasn’t paying too much attention to the flock of Mallards on the peninsula. However, I did notice them quacking at one point and the Ring-necked Ducks seemed to respond by perking up and looking around. Moments later a Bald Eagle flew over the lake. I think it was closer to the far side. It didn’t show any interest in the ducks, but when you’re prey, you it doesn’t pay to be careless.
Two Trumpeter Swans were on the peninsula as well. One of them repeatedly bobbed its head and honked. I took pictures of it because I could see something pale at the base of its bill on each side.
Reviewing photos, I saw they were bubbles. I’m not sure, but I suspect they were created when the nictitating membrane closed during the head bobbing. It’s hard to be sure if it was a consistent thing, but a photo I got showed the membrane going across the eye.
I went up to the Russian Cemetery before looping back home, but didn’t see too much else that caught my attention once I had left the lake.
