Sleet, snow and lovely birds

Yesterday afternoon was lovely and sunny and we walked to Blackford Pond to see if the frogs and toads were around, as in former years this has often been about the time of year when they are most in evidence. We didn't see any frogs or toads though we did see plentyof frogspawn.

This tufted duck allowed Crafty Green Boyfriend to take his photo

We then wandered through the Hermitage of Braid and made friends with this lovely goldcrest

When we got home, I found out that we had entirely overlooked a ring necked duck that was visiting Blackford Pond! This American duck is a rare vagrant in the UK and this individual has been touring the waterbodies of Edinburgh, so far turning up at Duddingston Loch and Figgate Pond as well as Blackford Pond. So today we braved the wind and sleet and hoped that the duck had chosen to stay at Blackford Pond for a while. Luckily he had and was quite happy to pose for the photographers who were gathering. The light wasn't perfect for photos, but Crafty Green Boyfriend got these photos

The ring necked duck can be mistaken for a tufted duck from a distance if you're not looking for it, but its beak is quite different, it doesn't have a tuft on the back of its head and it has a grey tummy which isn't clear in all lights (though does show quite well in the first of the photos above).