We really got a mouthful of winter weather in Estabrook Park this morning, at least temperature wise, and the thermometer said 14°F, -10°C for our international subscribers. Add in a nice breeze out of the northwest, and it felt as though it was below zero. The sky was clear, however, so there was plenty of sunlight and blue skies to make the pictures look nice, and my camera is literally rated to -10°C.
The pond was totally frozen over, so even the mink and muskrat were keeping to their burrows this morning, and I continued on to the river. There, at the far bank, I caught a bald eagle on the ground for the very first time. They are notorious scavengers, and there is some carcass protruding through the ice over there that it is working on. One reason that I haven’t caught them doing this before could be that they spend a lot more time looking than actually scavenging.
Another is probably that they are very skittish about being caught on the ground, and soon after this one spotted me, it retreated to the same tree in which we saw it yesterday.
Anyway, I was thrilled to find a great blue heron on such a cold morning, even if it was the only one, and it appeared to be soaking up some calories from the sun before trying to fish some more out of the river. Good idea.
Farther ashore, this white-breasted nuthatch was foraging on the ground, which I very seldom see them do, but which sounds like a really good idea when the windchill is -1°F. Clever bird.
This goldfinch was getting the best of both worlds, chowing down on seeds close to the ground and out of the wind while simultaneously soaking up warmth from the sun. Genius!
This male downy woodpecker seemed to be going about business as usual without making any special accommodation for the weather. Just a tough little guy, I guess.
Finally, this black-capped chickadee appeared to be just showing off by doing pullups while eating seeds.
See, it could still get them when just perched there, if it wanted.
Signs of Life in Estabrook Park 