Ducks on Ice

Ice is starting to melt here in SE Pennsylvania and ducks are on the move! Spring is in the air! I spent a half hour at Peace Valley this morning, and saw several groups of Northern Pintail arrive or take off heading north. Most of the Lake Galena is still frozen, but the area near the dam has several acres of open water that had a lot of ducks:

Common Merganser 80
Northern Pintail 64
Ring-necked Duck 58
Mallard 25
American Wigeon 7
Black Duck 5
Greater Scaup 1
Bufflehead 1

Also lots of gulls--mostly Lesser Black-backed Gull (45) and Herring Gull (30) but a few Ring-billed Gull and a couple of Greater Black-backed Gulls in the mix, out on the ice itself.

(Photos shot with HTC Incredible phone, close up through my old Balsch & Lomb Discoverer scope)