Monday March 7, 2011

 

 

Middle Creek Wildlife Management

Migration of Ducks, Geese, and Swans

Saturday, March 5

 

An Amish buggy we met on the way to the wildlife area.

On Saturday morning I told Cerwin that I may sit in my La-Z-Boy all day and organize old photos on one of my exterior hard drives. He replied, “I though you might like to go to Middle Creek Wildlife Management.”

I immediately changed my mind about doing nothing all day.

 

 

As we approached the management area we began seeing flocks of geese and swans in the air. If you look closely you can see them in this photo.

 

 

Tundra swans overhead.

 

 

When I saw this flock of snow geese, we stopped to get a picture – and I immediately noticed that they were decoys without one live goose in the field. Can you find three hunters?

 

 

In the next field hunters were sitting on the edge of the woods.

 

 

It was a beautiful, foggy morning to drive through the wildlife area.

 

 

 

 

Tundra swans

 

 

The area was also full of people.

 

 

The air was alive with the sound of honking.

 

 

 

 

The media reported that there are about 80,000 snow geese, 3,000 tundra swans, 2,500 Canada geese, and a variety of other water fowl in the area right now. Because snow geese are arriving and leaving daily, it is estimated that as many as 150,000 will go through Middle Creek.

 

 

 

 

Sometimes it was difficult for me to decipher between tundra swans and snow geese, but I always recognized the Canada geese who were mixed in with the flocks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some people have serious telescopes and cameras for birding.

 

 

 

 

As soon as I saw these, I thought, “They don’t look like snow geese,” and when I got home I discovered that they appear to be Ross geese. Ross geese have shorter necks and are a bit smaller than snow geese.

 

 

 

 

This picture is for my friend Pearl. Can you identify the ducks in the center?

 

 

These appear to be ring-necked ducks.

 

 

As we pulled into this parking lot, I realized that it was the place to be in the wildlife management area.

 

 

 

 

It was full of people coming from and going to Willow Point.

 

 

The white spots between the trees are snow geese.

 

 

Dried weeds along the trail.

 

 

 

 

 

Notice all the snow geese in the lake to the left.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Notice the black tips on the wings of the closest geese in flight – that is an indication that they are snow geese.

I have heard about the swan and goose migration for several years, but this is the first time I experienced it. I’m glad that Cerwin talked me out of sitting on my La-Z-Boy all day.