I had a great morning walk around a frozen Schoolhouse Pond this morning.  Highlights included many flyover gulls, some of which began sitting down on the ice.  An adult Great Black-backed Gull was present, as were 17 Herring Gulls, and 39 Ring-billed Gulls.  9 Laughing Gulls flew overhead, as did many more Ring-billed and Herring Gulls.

I flushed up a noisy Winter Wren around the rear of the pond, and a Hermit Thrush called from the woods.  A Wilson's Snipe flushed from the cattails near the boardwalk.  Raptors included a flyover Red-tailed Hawk and a perched Cooper's Hawk.

Waterfowl included 1 male Pintail, 1 male Wood Duck, 3 Gadwall, 20+ Northern Shovelers, Mallards, Canada Geese, adn 3 low flyover Tundra Swans.

The ice on the pond looked substantial enough that it should still be around at lunchtime, which could mean big numbers of gulls later today.  

Fred Shaffer
Patuxent MOS