Wachusett Reservoir (2/18)

Last Sunday I took a drive out to Wachusett Reservoir. The week before at least some of the water had still been open and there had been a good quantity of water birds to be found. But another week of sub-freezing temperatures resulted in a complete ice over of almost all the water.

The only exception was the River Road. There the fast moving water left openings in the ice here and there. These openings were obviously used by River Otter since you could see tracks where the animal emerged from one hole, scamped across the ice, and then dove back into the water. But, the ice was thick enough to also support larger amnimals like a Red Fox.

Birds in the area were relatively hard to find. There were Juncos, Titmice, and Robins all trying to find food in the dead of winter. But, the best sighting of the day was a Sharp-shinned Hawk that we found perched in a tree next to the road. I was able to get a few shots of the bird before it spooked. It was an amazing look, I just wish that I could have gotten a better focus on it through the woods.