The Ducks of December
<p>I returned to the regional park this morning after checking recent waterfowl sightings on eBird and noticing that someone had reported a snow goose two days earlier. Since there had only been the one sighting, I was skeptical that I would be able to find the snow goose — it may have moved on already — but I decided it was worth a try. I did in fact find the snow goose, but reflecting on the events leading up to the sighting, I realize that it was quite a fortunate encounter. Firstly, the snow goose sighting on eBird was in the northernmost section of the park, known as Area III; however, the only way to get to Area III in a car is to drive through Area II. Secondly, because it is a narrow road frequently crossed by wildlife and park guests, the speed limit is 15 mph and I do my best to adhere to that. Shortly after entering the park, I got the sense that the driver behind me was going to be impatient about this, so I turned off onto the winding secondary road aptly named Snake Road. As I drove, a large hawk entered my field of vision, flying over my car and landing in a nearby tree. I was so struck by it that I stopped and parked to take some pictures.</p>
<p><a href="https://medium.com/@mattrogerslb/the-ducks-of-december-98951f4a5b4"><strong>Read More</strong></a></p>