Day 299: Rough Legged Hawk and Friend!

Another species of bird from the Canadian sub Arctic, rough legged hawks, are working their way south for the winter. I found this Rough Legged Hawk trying to keep warm just before dawn (+6F). However the surprise of the day was when this ruffed grouse hit my car about fifteen minutes earlier. Given I was only moving at 10 mph, it hit me, not vice versa! Thankfully it survived the collision and is back in the woods.

Rough Legged Hawk
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Ruffed Grouse … attacker of Subaru Outbacks!
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Day 297 and 298: The Ducks of Duluth

Now that all the inland lakes and rivers are iced over, the Duluth harbor is seeing more duck activity. As you can see from both photos, the waterfront is both a beautiful but cold place to hang out!

Day 297: Sunrise Mallards (with a waterspout and sea smoke)
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Day 298: Common Goldeneye amongst the ice flows.
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Day 296: Closer to Home … My Feeder Friends

While most of the time I roam the region in search of birds, some days it is nice to just be home bound. I live right across the street from Amity Creek, and my yard is on the edge of a forest. Thus, I had fun taking these photos today!

Downy … Meet Hairy (size difference between downy and hairy woodpeckers)
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A whole lot of hole inspection going on! (white breasted nuthatch)
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