Everyday Life

 

Photo from 25 January 2025 (Female Mallard)

For nearly as long as I've been blogging, I've also been making a photo calendar from my own photos each year - just for myself +  as Christmas presents to family and one or two friends. (These days I'm down to just ordering three - for myself, my brother and my aunt.) 

The female mallard above, photo taken in January 2025, became my choice for January 2026. I'm really only showing it here now because I haven't been out much lately - so desperately turned back to last year for inspiration. But if I remember, I might continue to show my other chosen photos for my 2026 calendar month by month. 

Yesterday, my main achievement was that I managed to take another bag of recycling stuff to the designated containers, as enough snow had thawed away to make access possible. 

This morning, there was a new flurry of snow going on outside my windows, lasting all day - but not very much actually seems to have settled on the ground. I haven't been out for closer inspection, though. I had the laundry room booked for the afternoon, and in between turns down to the basement, watched the last two parts (of three) of a BBC documentary about Jane Austen. (Well worth watching, if available on some channel you have access to.)

Swan Among the Ducks

 We live in confusing times. I woke up fairly early (I think around 7:30) to another sunny day; but decided to stay in bed for a while, listening to the radio - forgetting that nowadays, that just means war news and speculations repeated over and over again, and not much else. My brain obviously almost immediately decided it had had enough of that depressing stuff, and when I did not turn off the radio, the brain turned itself off and went back to sleep.

Next time I woke up, it was 10:30. And I was still tired. (I dare not guess how I'll cope with daylight saving time in a couple of weeks...).  

Having had breakfast around 11, it felt a bit too soon to have lunch at 12, or even 13. So I decided to go out for a walk before the next meal, rather than after. My camera persuaded me to go somewhere "different" for a change, and suggested the little lake where there used to be a bird sanctuary, including some rare birds. A few years ago, they had to move the rare birds, though, as they were putting down pipes for long-distance heating through the lake.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Signs say that they intend to restore the sanctuary and bring in some new rarer birds. But for now, there is mostly the usual common mallards to be seen there - and sometimes bigger migrating birds landing there for a break - like geese or swans; and gulls in the summer.

Today, there were more mallards than I could count, plus among them, one (1) swan, making me think of H.C. Andersen's story The ugly duckling. (If you don't know it, it's about a swan hatched and growing up among ducklings, and feeling different).  

"He is too big," they all said.

 

 

I think they were all a bit disappointed with me because I hadn't brought them any food.

 

 

 

Somewhat to my surprise, there was still a thin layer of ice covering a large part of the lake.

Alas, as nice as the walk around that lake is, getting there and back involves walking along streets/roads with heavy traffic - which is one reason why I don't go there more often.

On my way back, I choose the "steep shortcut", a wooden walk-bridge over the railway. It makes the way shorter, but especially the first time in spring it's also a "fitness test" (phew):

43 steps up, and 46 down on the other side.

Weekend Reflections

On Monday this week we had a rare day with sunshine, blue sky, -10°C and snow.

One of my favourite reflection spots along the river…
And various kinds of ducks seem to agree.

Mrs & Mr Mallard

Mr & Mrs Goldeneye

Mr & Mrs … hmm, not sure we’ve ever been introduced…
(checking my birdbook at home) … Goosander??
(mergus merganser) (Swedish: storskrake)
Pleased to make your acquaintance, I’m sure!

Bird-watching

On Sunday morning I went for walk around the Bird Sanctuary Lake. The swans have moved on (except the few rare ones that live there permanently). Now it’s the gulls that rule! (Somehow “gull lake” does not seem to have quite the same ring to it as “swan lake” though!)

▲Black-headed Gull (I think. Blackheaded anyway…)▼

▲Goldeneye Duck. I noticed one of these in the river the other day too but then it was too far away from me to zoom in with my camera.▼

Mandarin Duck (from East-Asia). ▼
I think these “belong” to the sanctuary and are not commonly seen in the wild here. I’ve seen them before in the sanctuary lake, though.

Mandarin Ducks

Yesterday (Sunday) I went for a walk to our Museum Park and also around the little lake below which is a Bird Sanctuary.

I was especially excited today to catch sight of this lovely couple of Mandarins:

 

The Mandarin is an East Asian duck. They were imported to parks in Europe and some feral colonies can now also be found.  In our sanctuary lake today I found them in the open part of it, so I take it they are free to come and go if they like. But it’s probably a good place for them to stay!

I’ve never come so close to them before that I’ve been able to zoom them in… But today I was!

This fellow – a Wood Duck I think – also turned up, but was chased away by the Mandarin drake… I think the Mandarin was a bit protective of his female companion and did not want any competition!

The Wood Duck comes from North America but is closely related to the Mandarin Duck.

Mandarin Ducks are referred to by the Chinese as Yuan-yang, where yuan (鴛) and yang (鴦) respectively stand for male and female Mandarin Ducks. In traditional Chinese culture, Mandarin Ducks are believed to be lifelong couples, unlike other species of ducks. Hence they are regarded as a symbol of conjugal affection and fidelity, and are frequently featured in Chinese art.  --- The Mandarin Duck symbol is also used in Chinese weddings because in traditional Chinese lore, they symbolize wedded bliss and fidelity.

“Hey, I think you’ve got enough pictures now! Bye!”

PS. After I’d already posted this, I happened to come across a meme called Mandarin Monday… I just can’t resist linking up!

Enjoying the Sun

… but it’s still cold, no real sense of spring in the air …

Of Birds and Windy Weather

When was it I came close to complaining it was getting too hot? A week and a half ago?? The last few days I’ve been back to wearing a winter jacket! On Saturday for the opening of the sculpture biennal I took a spring/summer jacket, but so wished I’d taken a warmer one instead! So the next day I took one of the winter jackets out again. (Actually all my winter coats/ jackets are still in a wardrobe in the flat and usually never get put away any further than that. But I had “put them away” in the sense of giving them a brush and going through the pockets etc, and hoping not to need them again for another four months or so…)

Walking home from the Supermarket on Sunday (with the warmer jacket on), I stopped for a while on the walkbridge over the river, put my groceries down, and watched the gulls playing in the wind. They certainly seemed to be enjoying it (the wind) even if I wasn’t…

You who live near windy coasts and other waters that attact gulls, will know what I mean. They wait for a hard gust of wind, throw themselves against it, flap their wings like crazy… Sometimes they get lucky and manage to take advantage of it for elegant loops. At other times the wind gets too strong for them and they just look ridiculous, flapping away but being blown backwards instead. But they take it all with a laugh!

But the gulls can be bullies too… This one kept bothering a family of goldeneyes:

The goldeneyes I’m really happy to see, because when I started watching ducks from this spot in the river, three or four years ago, there was one pair of them, male and female, among a flock of mallards; but then the female disappeared, and for two years I kept seeing the drake alone; still keeping close to, but also some distance from, the mallards. He looked lonely!

Now there is again a male and a female and I think I spotted some little ones too. It could be a different drake too of course, but in my imagination it is the same one who has found himself a new wife…

I’d still need an even better camera to spy on birds!