Wednesday 4 February 2009

Ice

I felt very sorry for the swan on our lake yesterday! He actually has two legs, but obviously he took it in turns to warm each leg up! He and the geese are about the only birds big enough to act as ice breakers, and they can only manage the thinnest ice. The ducks just have to waddle over the ice as best they can, though I have to admit they can get up a fair turn of speed!

The gulls on the other hand look as if they don't care, but as soon as food appears they are a shrieking mass, twisting and turning, diving and snatching at each other in their efforts to get whatever is on offer!
I think of the gulls as the hooligans of the bird world! Mean of me, I know, as birds are just that, birds, and built to keep themselves alive, survival of the fittest/he who gets to the food first!
Its very peaceful, watching the birds, and our ducks and geese are well and frequently fed. They all seem to thrive on white bread! I do wonder sometimes if humans are so very different? (not the white bread bit, the behaviour!)

6 comments:

cheshire wife said...

The pond at the end of our garden has been frozen. (It is not our pond it is in the farmer's field). Today when I went down to look at it, it had thawed out and ducks and moor hens were swimming on it. Unfortunately we do not have a good view of the pond from the cottage.

Marja said...

wow it must be extremly cold overthere. Hard to imagen when it is here quite warm.
There are lots of these shrieking gulls here as well. Always fighting over crumbs.

much2ponder said...

We are not seeing many birds of any kind here in Wisconsin. It is just too cold. I like these pictures, did you take them?

Thanks for stopping by my post. I know I have been here before and enjoyed reading. I will stop back soon.

Gilly said...

Yes, they are my pics, M2P. Nearly all the ones I post are. Bit cold to take them at the moment, taking my gloves off to do so doesn't appeal!

much2ponder said...

Gilly, I wanted to e-mail you in response to your response on my blog, but you do not list an e-mail. Your comment has had me thinking, but mostly I want to encourage you and tell you how wonderful it is to hear you held on and didn't let go. You know what I am referring to. If you e-mail me at vdlpat@msn.com, I will e-mail you back.

Rainbow dreams said...

I feel sorry for that swan... I'm not so keen on the cold!
Know what you mean about watching bird behaviour and seeing some parallels to human behaviour in it too...
only we can't fly away...!! :)