Saturday a flock of these little guys landed in our cove. They are called Bufflehead and are only about a foot long. They stop here for a few days twice a year on their way south and north. This picture is from last year. The following happened last November.
There were 15 of them feeding in the shallow water off my shore. 30 Canada geese tried to chase them away and seemed to be winning. I went for my morning shower.
When I came back every one of the geese was lined up along my shore and along my neighbor's shore. The buffleheads were a little offshore, facing the geese. Both were watching a disturbance in the water. At first it looked like a goose was trying to drown a bufflehead by holding it under the water. But soon it became clear that the bufflehead was attacking the goose from beneath, which was why the geese were on shore afraid to go back in the water. The 15 buffleheads gathered in two small groups offshore, keeping the geese lined up along the shore.
After a while the buffleheads backed off a little, allowing the geese to gather cautiously in the water and swim away. Not long after, about 30 bufflehead joined the original 15 and they all continued feeding off my shore.
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