American Kestrel (and ducks)...

 We've been in and out of the barns lately with the snow and cold here.  The baby calves keep coming at a steady pace so the corrals and barns have become a busy work hub.  As the guys were going through the barn, they mentioned a "peculiar bird" that they had seen.  Later on, Hubs said he found the bird dead in the feed bunk.  He left it there in case I wanted to go look at it.  This is an American Kestrel.  It's a beautiful, small falcon that summers up north.  I rarely see one, but here he is!  I imagine this fella was swooping around the barn rafters after small birds and literally knocked himself out.

 

Doesn't it have a pretty speckled breast?

 

The color of the wings is a blue-gray and the body is a rusty-red.  I like the white dots on the black feathers.  Bright orange color is found on the eye and the nose, and his legs are the same color.

I have read that the sexes of this bird look just alike so there is no distinction between them.  His neat, little, hooked beak is good for tearing and eating insects and small reptiles.

Back at the pond, we find the ducks walking on water.  The pond has gone from ice to slush to liquid as the temperatures change from nighttime lows in the teens to daytime highs in the 30s.  The Northern Shovelers work hard to keep their little spot open, but sometimes it freezes up on them despite all their paddling feet can do.

This picture is not very clear, but I wanted to show you the slushy duck trail in the water.  They are a determined bunch.  I love their sweet swimming call, "Sup, sup, sup, sup."  It makes me think they are talking about supper, which in a way, they are.  They shovel up their food as they swim along.

Are you seeing any migrating birds?  Do tell.