The neighborhood I live in has a small pond, off the historic Town Branch Creek, which runs behind my house. It is a typical suburban track-home neighborhood, with houses barely 8 feet apart, but we are right on the edge nature and it has always surprised me how much flora and fauna we have.
This morning I decided to head down to the pond before the sun rose too high and visit my favorite friend, Mr. Muscovy. He is the big bird with the red face and black and white feathers. I have lived here for 3 years now and this drake has been around the entire time. I have never seen him fly and only occasionally have I seen him swim. He is big (and definitely a drake) and basically isn’t bothered by much of anything or anyone. Technically, I think he is a “piebald” Muscovy and likely escaped from someone’s home as they are domesticated.
On the walk back I also captured this Blue Jay. We have very few of these critters compared with Cardinals and Red-Wing Blackbirds. I had a nice image of him taking flight, but he was just out of the frame.