The temps in Estabrook Park this morning were mild, at just around freezing, the winds were light, but the clouds had thickened up again. Two out of three ain’t bad, right? Plus, the snow that is sifting down now, as I write this, hadn’t started yet.
The biggest surprise of the day came early, on my way north along the river. I heard the familiar chirp of a winter wren, and it took me a while to find the little rascal, but it eventually came out for a nice portrait. After all this time, I doubt it’s the same one who stayed with us for much of the winter, but it was in just about the same spot, so who knows? Well, the wren does, of course, but it kept quiet about that.
The recent usual crowd of common mergansers, hooded mergansers, and common goldeneyes, along with a slew of mallards and geese, was still on the water around the upstream island, but nobody wanted their picture taken today, so I headed to the pond, where I found our little red squirrel looking a lot more comfortable than the last time we saw it.
Finally, the ice on the pond had frozen back up overnight, so I didn’t see anyone else there and continued back to the river. There, I found one of the recently arrived swamp sparrows clinging to straw the way we often see American tree sparrows do. I did not know that they knew that trick.
Lastly, in addition to the pond icing up overnight, here’s a puddle by the river that took its sweet time growing some nice big ice crystals.
The current forecast for tomorrow morning looks perfect, with temps in the mid 20s, mostly still air, and clear skies, so let’s hope some critters come out to enjoy it.
Signs of Life in Estabrook Park 