A Few Winter Show-offs at Fountain Hills Lake

A bad shot of a beautiful pair of Hooded Mergansers on the north island of Fountain Hills Lake,
at 10:00am on November 12, 2014.  Photo by Peggy Thomas.

  After a loooonnnnngggggg unwanted hiatus from birding, I'm finally baaaccckkkk!  It was rough not getting a birding-fix for months on end.  I must admit that I developed a serious case of bird-envy and had to stop reading the AZNM Listserve in order to preserve my sanity.  My occasional forays into FaceBook's Birding--Arizona and Southwest page were agonizing, and brief looks at bird blogs were unbearable.  I thought I could live vicariously through the birding adventures of such prolific birders as Gordon Karre, Tommy D., and Laurence Butler, but that led me to fantasize about the possibility of teleportation, and then to a serious investigation into the latest advances in hover-craft technology (a gal can dream!).

Another bad shot of Hooded Mergansers on the north island of Fountain Hills Lake,
at 10:00am on November 12, 2014.  Photo by Peggy Thomas.

This morning while scanning flocks of mainly Ruddy Ducks and American Wigeons at Fountain Hills Lake (near the island at the lake's north end) a few of our flashier waterfowl suddenly appeared.  Mixed in with the Wigeons were 3 gorgeous pairs of Hooded Mergansers!  After taking a few far-off photos I began heading back to my van.  Then I spotted 2 flashes of bright white out by the fountain.  Too far off for a photo were a beautiful pair of male Buffleheads! 

One of several Horned Grebes (CORRECTION
- EARED GREBE) at Fountain Hills Lake,
10:30am on November 12, 2014.  Photo by Peggy Thomas

Yessss, fall is here, heralded in by our wintering ducks.  Now I just need to see a few White-crowned Sparrows in my yard for my November birding to be complete.

Hope to see many of you out in the field, forest, park, or roadside soon!