Hoodeds in flight

It was in the low teens this morning, and ice began to creep back over the millpond edges and in the center. But in a stretch of open water between those solid spots, several Hooded Mergansers held court, as they have recently. For a while, the handsome ducks didn't seem to notice me, so they spent their time swimming serenely, and once or twice the male threw his head back in a posture that seemed to say, "I'm pretty special, ladies. What do you think?" They didn't seem to notice, and every so often, they stopped this incipient frivolity—we are getting into the mating season, after all—and dived after small fish. It was an interesting guessing game to forecast where they'd resurface. These are skittish birds, and when a pair realized I was trying to work my way closer to get a better shot, they took to the air and headed towards the upper waterfall. The ripples they made fanned out and lapped at the skim ice.