I spent 45 minutes this evening at the Wilder Dam overlook watching the 
nocturnal waterfowl roost assemble.  When I arrived at 4:45 pm, 15 
Common Mergansers were there - 11 already roosting, 4 in the current 
fishing.  Numbers built slowly until a few minutes after 5 pm, when 
small flocks began to arrive regularly, all from the south.  A female 
Common Goldeneye flew in solo at 5:14, then a male at 5:18.  The first 
Hoodeds appeared at 5:15, after which they were the dominant species to 
arrive.  By the time I left at 5:40, it was quite dark, and I hadn't 
noticed any additional arrivals for 4-5 minutes.  Final tally was 99 
Commons, 73 Hoodeds, and the 2 Common Goldeneyes.

This could be an interesting site to observe in the weeks ahead, as 
early migrants begin to filter in before the ice upriver melts.  It 
would also be interesting to watch the flock disperse at dawn, and to 
compare numbers and diversity then to what was there at last light the 
previous evening.

Chris

-- 
Chris Rimmer
Vermont Center for Ecostudies
P.O. Box 420
Norwich, VT 05055
802-649-1431 ext. 1
http://www.vtecostudies.org