There seems to be no end to the interesting ways ice can form. In the case above, the river level dropped leaving a horizontal ice cloud clinging to a pair of branches.

I really like the different patterns in the water which make up the foreground and background. of this photo. Having a nice subject in the middle doesn’t hurt either.

On days when the temperature hovers around the freezing mark, ice formations on the river can be quite interesting. I found this early morning shot quite beautiful. In it, one can find crisp linear patterns, diffuse undulating waves, and everything in between.

Last week, I thought I might have photographed a juvenile bald eagle. It turned out to be a red-tail hawk. This time, I am fairly certain this is an eagle but will wait for the neighborhood experts to opine. S/he is perched on a branch that is about 30 feet from our house and I will ensure that our new plans include a window positioned to take advantage of this view. Again, I must apologize for the poor photo quality. I shot through double pane glass at 6:40 AM with overcast skies.

Common Mergansers dive underwater to catch fish. After the chicks leave the nest in summer, the female stays with them as they grow up while males gather in flocks. In winter, mergansers form large flocks on inland reservoirs and rivers. They stay in these tight flocks to feed and court during the cold months. In migration and winter, they mix with other fish-eating, diving ducks such as Bufflehead, goldeneyes, and other species of mergansers. For several weeks now, their numbers have been increasing on the river and it has been fun to watch them fishing.

The most difficult part of designing our new house by far has been working out the details of the stairs. Because they connect two floors, their placement affects the floorplan of both which means a change on one cascades to the other. If they are stacked, one over the other, for efficient use of space as is the case in our west wing, a change on one floor affects three. Stair rise and run determine climbing comfort and the total number of treads determines floor to floor spacing. Today, I finalized all three staircases and have settled on a rise of 7 1/4″ with a run of 10″ and 14 treads resulting in a floor-to-floor height of 9′ 3/4″ (7.25 x (14+1)). This is a huge improvement over the as-built condition of the house which has an 8 1/2″ rise and 8 1/2″ run with 11 treads, a design that is no longer code compliant and very unpleasant to climb or descend. Most importantly, the east basement, where my new shop will reside, will now have a finished ceiling height of 8′ 3″ instead of 7′ 8″ which makes a HUGE difference which will be appreciated by anyone who has ever worked with 4’x8′ sheet goods.

Maya provided this macro image of a peacock feather she took using her iPhone and hand-help loupe. She is taking a class now which looks to the natural world for the wonders of engineering. The iridescent plumage of the peacock originates in the fine side branches of the feathers. Pigment particles are embedded into the newly grown feathers during the molting season. They absorb light of certain wavelengths, or disperse the reflected light, and so contribute to the color of the plumage.

Yesterday, while brunching with the kids at Kyle’s apartment, Maya asked me to photograph this object she found. Obviously originating from a tree or bush, it really is quite fascinating when viewed close up. Anyone who can provide an ID please do so and I will update the post.

UPDATE: This is a seedpod from a Sweet Gum tree. Thank you to SteveK for the ID.

The river menu today included a pair of wood ducks. As the temperature increases, so does the variety of birdlife on the water. Regrettably, the recent spate of warm weather will be short-lived as cold temperatures are expected to return next week. For the second week in a row, Jeanine and I joined the kids at Kyle’s apartment for brunch. Featured was a french toast casserole and Nicolai’s signature egg sandwiches. I suspect a picture of these delights would have been a nice break from all the recent wildlife images but I forgot to bring my camera with me.

Today’s visitors included a pair of beavers. They can be hard to distinguish from muskrats but the combination of some tail slapping on the water and a telltale photo of one sitting on the bank left no doubt. They appear to be building a lodge about 20 feet down the shore from our house. If that is the case, you can expect to see a lot more of this couple (they mate for life).

A female and male hooded merganser on the river today. The lighting was not good and once again I am shooting through a double-pane glass. In our new house design, I will strategically locate windows that open for taking better photos of this type.

Jeanine spotted this bird when it landed on a branch just outside our living room and immediately alerted me. We were not sure if it was a juvenile bald eagle or a red-tailed hawk. After posting the image to our neighborhood list server, several resident experts confirmed it was a red-tail hawk. I was between work meetings and had to shoot this quickly through a window which did not help with the quality. Still, I never imagined I would be photographing a scene like this from inside our house.

Pictured above is my Zoom meeting setup. I use my mirrorless camera positioned over my computer screen aimed down the Sudbury River. Strong lighting is needed to balance the exposure of the outside scene. This setup gives my audience a lovely background and allows me to look at an angle that simulates “eye contact”.

If Maya was an ancient dinosaur she would have been one of the nice ones. I am not sure why this image of her skeleton that she sent me made me think of that, but I did. Unfortunately, she is experiencing lingering back pain from an injury she sustained while moving a heavy Fuse printer at Formlabs when she was interning with them last year. We are hopeful that some good chiropractor work will address the situation.