Diving in the Reservoir

Every time I see a ring-necked duck (Aythya collaris), I start to smile. This is one of the most delightful diving ducks around. Although the ring around the duck's neck is seldom seen, the stripe on the bill is always visible. Why isn't it called a ring-billed duck? I don't know, I didn't name them!

Ring-necked duck on the Reservoir, November 20, 2014

The latest Filming the Feathers video features the ring-necked ducks I've seen since 2013. It is set to Mozart. I think all the videos were taken at the Reservoir.

You can get a sense of the ring-necked duck's size next to this Canada goose. These ducks often hang out with the dabblers, and I've frequently seen them swimming with the mallards. They eat aquatic plants, including seeds, roots, and stems, as well as insects and mollusks. In the video, you'll see one ring-necked trying to eat a large acorn, dropping it, picking it up and dropping it again.

Ring-necked duck and Canada goose, January 19, 2016

These photos are from 2014, 2015 and January 2016. I hope I get to see more ring-neckeds as the ducks fly through this November.

Ode to Autumn

The flowers have been blooming brightly in September and October, and the leaves have been turning colors and falling off the trees. How to express the joy of walking through the parks of New York City and gazing upon those brilliant colors? Ah! Create a video ode to the blooms and falling leaves. 

Laupot Bridge, Central Park, Oct. 21, 2016

You may recall a recent video, Autumn in Brooklyn's Garden. That gave a taste of some of the fall colors from one day at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. But The Falling Leaves, below, is a banquet! This visual feast is set to the first and third movements of Vivaldi's Four Seasons: Autumn, performed by John Harrison.

Here are some of the autumn photos, many included in the video. You can find more photos on the Flowers and Foliage page.

Bandshell Babies

Sunday we were so delighted to see four hawks in the Bethesda Fountain/Bandshell/Elm Grove (Literary Walk) area of Central Park. Our first sighting was Sheep Meadow Mama, whom we hadn't seen in a very long time since her nest blew down in Sheep Meadow last winter. She was flying around, chasing out a first-year red-tailed hawk that was in the west elm grove.

Sheep Meadow Mama, Oct. 23, 2016, near the Bandshell in Central Park

The youngster flew north of the Bandshell and settled in a tree for a while before moving to a streetlight over Terrace Drive. After watching this kid for some time, my friend went to see if Sheep Meadow Mama was still in the grove. Instead, he found another first-year hawk in the east grove.

First-year red-tailed hawk over Terrace Drive, Oct. 23, 2016

The second first-year hawk in the elm grove, Oct. 23, 2016

The second hawk flew to another tree just south of the Bandshell, caught a rat down in the ivy, flew back to the east elm grove, and ate the rat. When finished, the kid flew east of Bethesda Fountain. We heard a very loud kier, saw the youngster fly west over us toward Sheep Meadow, while Octavia (Pale Male's mate, a hawk with a very loud cry) flew north.

The video really shows the two kids. We wondered if they were siblings, since they both have the very long "eyebrows" and very similar head shapes.

This first gallery is of the first youngster we saw.

This is the second kid, including a fuzzy shot of the meal.