By this time of year Ducks are paired up and getting ready for nesting. On Christmas day, River Road was not busy so I was able to stop and take some photos. The first pair I saw were Gadwall. The male is on the right followed by the female.
Gadwall - Fraser River, Delta BC
A bit further along was a larger group of ducks including this Mallard pair.
Mallard - Fraser River, Delta BC
And a larger group of Northern Pintail, probably two mated pairs.
Northern Pintail - Fraser River, Delta BC
I arrived at Deas Island Park and had the place all to myself. I'd birded here before but never had much luck. Today that would change.
I normally head to the south side of the island, but the trails looked very icy, so I took the north fork instead which led to the Island Loop trail..
Island Loop Trail -Deas Island Park, Delta BC
There were a few bird sounds coming from the woods so I made some pishing noises. A small bird popped out nearby. I was pretty sure it was a Wren, most likely Pacific. Since no one was around, I decided to try a little playback of the call on my phone a bit further along on the trail. This brought the bird out and I took a few shots with my Canon.
Pacific Wren - Deas Island Park, Delta BC
Pacific Wren - Deas Island Park, Delta BC
I also had my Nikon Coolpix and got one shot off with it. The result was quite surprising.
Pacific Wren - Deas Island Park, Delta BC
I'm not sure how the camera made this transformation, but the results are impressive. I have to admit that the other two photos more closely match what I was seeing.
There were a few other birds around but it was time to leave. As I was walking back to the car, I saw this Junco on the a patch of ice. It looks like someone had thrown some seed down for the birds.
Dark-eyed Junco - Deas Island Park, Delta BC
That was it for Christmas birding, the Wren was an unexpected gift.
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