Mallard Duck: Kennebunk, Maine, USA, February 2026 — As I have mentioned before, the river here in town is frozen higher up than I have seen it in years. There is certainly open water nearer the ocean (a few miles to the southeast), but below the dam in town, the river is almost completely frozen right through the rapids to the foot of the dam. It will be below zero the next few mornings, and I expect it will freeze over completely. That leaves our local population of Mallards without access to open water, and they have taken to spending their days on the ice (they may move downriver when the open water completely disappears, of course). They are feeding on something at or just below the surface of the ice and snow mix. I asked Gemini AI what it might be, and she said probably trapped plant matter (seeds mostly) that came down with the snow, or maybe small snails or crustaceans caught at the surface by the freeze. Or they might be eating snow for the moisture (but that seems unlikely while there is any open water left…unless of course they like the taste of snow). Sony a7CR. Tamron 150-500 at 500mm. Program with bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator and assembled in FrameMagic.