Common Mergansers in St. John's

 In the throes of yet another storm, I am glad to have all of the pictures I took last Thursday.

 Never have I had such a good opportunity to see Common Merganser so well.

 Three Common Mergansers (two female and one male) have made Quidi Vidi Lake their temporary home while waiting for the ice to move back off shore.

 This little detour provided up-close and personal views of this usually skittish species.

 Mind you, they don't swim right up to you and ask of any kind of hand-out. However, they do swim about comfortably only feet from shore.

 The color that makes them striking from a distance makes them awesome from nearby.

 After Thursday at Quidi Vidi, I have gone through my collection of photos of all the diving ducks and the mergansers and deleted them all!

 Nothing I had could compare to the shots of the last week.

 With little to say today, I will let the pictures speak for themselves.

 Addendum: This may just be the worst weather ever during the Backyard Bird Count. I have been housebound for three consecutive days, and my biggest report will be the presence of 10 juncos at my feeder today. I feel bad for them as are getting pelted by the freezing rain. Maybe I should invite them in to break the boredom of the day.