Awww ... Urban Wildlife Watching

A couple years ago, construction workers converted 

a ditch near work into a marshy retention pond.

It's meant to hold overflow rainwater from surrounding

neighborhoods, preventing homes from flooding.

Last summer it seemed to be a wasted effort

because we had so little rain, but this year 

the reeds and cattails are happily standing in water, 

providing shelter for redwing blackbirds,

mallard ducks, and Canada geese.

A couple weeks ago, I noticed this goose roosting 

on a spot not ten feet from the road.

Last week I took another look and saw that

she had little bits of yellow fluff peeping from

beneath her own gray feathers.

Babies! She'd hatched her little goslings!

I could only see four.

A few days later, I saw she had gone.

I figured she's taken her babies to another, safer spot,

away from the dangers and distractions of human

intervention and annoyances.

Another coworker went closer to the nest 

and saw there were eggs.

Would she have just abandoned her eggs

or had she realized they weren't going to hatch

and taken her little family to a new home?

Segregation

After swim practice Friday, I walked over to the Canal.
While a bit cooler, the day was sunny and beautiful.
People were walking, running, cycling and
skating alongside the water, enjoying every moment.
I saw turtles sunbathing under the Washington 
Street bridge, a heron ot two in flight over
the river, and ducks and geese taking a mid-day
siesta. Their naptime brought about a question:
Why were they segregated?
Under one bridge, there was a flock of mallards
dozing and drifting in the water.
Under another bridge there was a flock
of geese. Well, the birds were primarily geese;
a few confused-looking mallards paddled around
as if wondering how they got there and
where were their buddies?

And then there was this guy.

Where did he belong? 

His expression makes him look as 

though even he is a bit confused
because none of the other 
geese look like him.

Squatters

The Canada geese show up every spring, 

taking up residence on parking lots and on the tops 

of any available flat-roofed buildings.

We have plenty of both in Indy. I suspect the

black-topped parking lots may resemble

ponds to the geese, and there is standing rain

water on top of many buildings.

They are the twenty-first century incarnation

of the previous century's pigeons,

but they leave larger turds.

Much larger - think bench beagle

or cocker spaniel. Whew!

Waiting for the Moment to Pass ...

This Canada goose waited while its mate took a few moments 

to de-stress. They were standing in the drive at work,

surrounded by parked cars and people walking in and out 

of the building. The black surface of the parking lot

must resemble that of a lake, especially when it's been raining

and water streams over its surface. Why would the geese be

so attached to it otherwise? Even the flat roof of the building would

be more private, a veritable goose spa, compared to the busy lot.

The geese leave turds the size of cigarillos and have chased some 

employees, so goose wranglers have been called in to limit

their presence. Other than the turds, I don't much mind them;

 they're the closest things to office pets we have.