Late this morning at Upper Valley Land Trust's Zebedee Wetland, a pair of
Hooded Mergansers hanging around (the leaning) nest box, female in and out
several times - she'd hop out and swim around with him a little while, then
in again for a minute - male repeatedly chasing away another lone female.
Sometimes the couple advanced on her together.  Male would hunch his neck
between his shoulders and swim very fast until, with croaking cries, the
interloper would flap away maybe 20 yards, then turn and slowly try to slip
up on them again.  Interesting to observe the flared, then relaxed crest
action.  This went on at least 45 minutes.  Suddenly, the lone female
lifted off full-speed in direction of nest box and all 3 flew away over the
marsh.

 And a pair of Canada Geese still nesting there surprisingly close to the
gate.  Hard to tell whether nest is on a rock or stump.  She had herself
so flat-wrapped around it, you'd think she was dead but I knew better,
having observed her, head-under-wing, from a distance; her guard gander
skulking-feeding among the reeds nowhere near...

(Thetford Conservation Commission recently bought a replacement nest box
(another is underwater) but we haven't managed to install it yet).

Connie Snyder