Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Common Goldeneye

 Male Common  Goldeneye swimming amongst ice floes in Whitby Harbour

Although swimming in icy water looks frigid to us humans, common goldeneyes often stay as far north in winter as they possibly can.

Swimming to and fro, occasionally diving

It all depends on whether they can find open water as they dive for their food: aquatic invertebrates, vegetation and small fish.

Ice floes

Some spend the winter in marine waters, but quite a few visit the Great Lakes until the ice melts further north..
I am connecting to Stewart M's Wild Bird Wednesday HERE

65 comments:

Revrunner said...

Maybe this is the origin of the phrase "cold duck"? :-)

Carole M. said...

...it's really handsome and that's quite some pond to live in ...brrrr

The Cranky said...

Is it any wonder, given his habitat, that although he's really quite handsome he also looks slightly mad?

orchid0324 said...

OMG, looks SO cold! Really handsome Goldeneye♡♡♡

Thank you SO much for stopping by to my blog.

Sending you Lots of Love and Hugs from Japan, xoxo Miyako*

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

They must have some really good insulation going on.

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

They must have some really good insulation going on.

Minoru Saito said...

Hi! Nice captures. The bird photos are very beautiful.This bird looks like a tufted duck.
A few years ago, I stayed at Markham about a week. There was a small swan lake. I went to the Great Lakes from Toronto by grey hound bus. It was a nice memory for me.

William Kendall said...

Terrific captures and a handsome looking fellow. He doesn't seem to mind the cold.

Judy said...

That first image is my favourite!!!

Alexa T said...

Lovely to discover your pics about nature from East Gwillimbury, Toronto just with a click!! I'll be so glad to read more. Thanks for sharing!

Darla said...

Good grief that looks cold!

Darla

Nancy said...

Striking! Glad he was able to spend some time with you. xo

The Furry Gnome said...

Great pictures! Actually I like the one of the ice floes.

Carver said...

He's a beauty but is sure looks cold for him in the ice.

Michelle said...

A beautiful bird. His eye is so striking.

Stuart said...

In spite of his name, there's nothing common with this beautiful bird. Great shots !

Hootin Anni said...

Amazing images...such a cold looking surrounding, but it doesn't seem to mind a bit.

George said...

I get chills just looking at the duck among all that ice, but your photos are marvelous.

Small City Scenes said...

Beautiful Duck. They do say feathers are good insulators. Nice shots. MB

Linda W. said...

I've never seen a duck with such a bright yellow eye! Nice shot of the icy floes.

TexWisGirl said...

how pretty! have only seen them in blogland, never in person.

Anonymous said...

What a striking looking bird, fantastic!

John @ Beans and I on the Loose said...

He looks so brilliant now. Even the ice crystals too. I wonder why?

MadSnapper said...

i like that pop of gold in his beautiful black and white feathers...

Karen said...

Oh what great shots of this handsome duck. Love that first one, with his foot so visible underwater!

Giga said...

Cieszę się, że te śliczne ptaki są długo z Wami. Pozdrawiam.
I am glad that these beautiful birds are long with you. Yours.

Kathy said...

Those ice floes are amazing.

Birgitta said...

So great photos! Terrific captures!

Buttons Thoughts said...

Oh they are so handsome. Hug B

Maude Lynn said...

Outstanding shots!

Unknown said...

Cool pictures! Pun unintended.=)
//Scaniatjejen
http://www.scaniatjejen.se

RedPat said...

This is a new one for me, EG!

Ela said...

What a beautiful duck. His eyes are wonderful !
Greetings <(')

Ruth Hiebert said...

It makes me cold,just looking at these pictures. You have lovely shots of this duck.

Findlay Wilde said...

A very handsome bird swimming round all that ice. From Findlay

Halcyon said...

I know it's cold, but those scenes are so pretty! I love the ice floes especially. :)

Unknown said...

He's very handsome!

cieldequimper said...

Pretty fella and that's definitely a golden eye!

Phil Slade said...

Hey! I thought I had some pretty good pictures of the wary Goldeneye but now you go and beat me hands down. Well done.

Suburban Girl said...

Wow, that is a golden eye! Very nice looking bird.

Anonymous said...

He is beautiful! I love how their eyes stand out so much.

Gail Dixon said...

Oh, wow. I had seen reports that we had one in the area, but the weather's been too nasty to check him out. I should've braved the elements. He is beautiful!

Rohrerbot said...

Oh my gosh!!!! That water looks SOOOOO COLD! I'm always amazing how these birds can survive those brutal temps. Really really nice close up shot on the first pic! One of my favorite birds with awesome markings. It'll warm up.

Barb said...

what a great (chilly) shot of those floes! Looks like you still have plenty of snow/ice!

eileeninmd said...

I love the beautiful eye on this duck! Great shots.

NatureFootstep said...

how wonderful to have him so close! Only two have arrived to my area as I have seen. And, of course in the middle of the lake. :)

Gordon said...

These are really stunning shots, of a very beautiful bird.
All the best Gordon.

KL said...

Shoooo adorably cute :-)....As usual great shots. What do they do if the water completely freezes over?

Anonymous said...

That eye is amazing! I love how clear the water is. I can see his foot.

Linda said...

Lovely ducks! Thanks for sharing.

Stephanie said...

Awesome shot of the ice floe. and great shots of the birds too!

Roan said...

That water looks really cold! Brr, but Mr. Goldeneye doesn't seem to mind.

Debbie said...

i will never understand why they add the word "common" to these names. nothing common about this beauty!!

Jack said...

You got me thinking about how it is that ducks can live (and thrive!) in such nasty cold weather . . .

Al said...

What a pretty bird - the eyes are striking.

Rose said...

Great capture...you really manage to get some fabulous captures of ducks/waterfowl. And that ice looks soooo cold.

cedarmerefarm said...

Wow, that looks very very cold! But the Goldeneye looks very happy. Great photos, CameraGirl!

Randy said...

The ice looks gold. That is one yellow eye.

Carletta said...

That first shot makes me shiver but it's a lovely one!

Malyss said...

No wonder they're called Goldeneye! :o)
Impressed to see them in such cold, and happy !

Anonymous said...

It won't be chill for the bird. I feel chill while seeing the bird swimming in middle of ice.

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

Hi You are right, it does look cold but that beautiful Goldeneye seems to love it. Great shots

Grampy said...

Fine captures. Capturing the iridescence of the head feathering wonderful.

Mary Howell Cromer said...

Stunning, Brilliant, Superb!

Neil said...

I was going to complain about cold showers but that water is a lot colder. Beautiful Duck.

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East Gwillimbury is a rural town less than an hour north of Toronto, Canada's largest city. My family calls me CameraGirl because I take my camera with me wherever I go.