Waterfowl Stirring Around the Kempton Valley

Flocks of Snow Geese (Anser caerulescens) are passing through our area as they leave our area and head north on their spring migration, but they aren’t alone! Huge movements of Canada geese, tundra swans, greater white-fronted geese, and ducks, such as northern pintail, mallard, American black, redhead, green-winged teal, American widgeon, northern shoveler, wood duck, common merganser, and hooded merganser, have also been observed. 

As the weather warms and rain brings the promise of seasonal blooms, thousands of ducks and geese will take flight on their way back north for the breeding season, a sure sign of spring to come. Snow geese in particular breed in the high arctic of Canada and Alaska, as do tundra swans and greater white-fronted geese, but most duck species will not migrate as far to breed.

Photo by Bill Moses, taken at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, South Lookout.