One of the interesting birds I saw at Lake Betz this week was a pair of Hooded Mergansers.
I first spotted them looking for food in a small overflow pond/bog right next to the big lake.

They swam around next to one another for a bit, never more than a few feet away from each other at a time.
Then, the male Merganser started swimming in circles and began to arch himself out of the water flapping and splashing.

As it turned out, he was trying impress the female with a courtship dance.
He fanned his black and white crest and fluttered at the center of bubbly spirals on the small pond.
For her part, the female was quite interested. She kept an eye on him the entire time as they paddled in unison on the water.

After a few minutes, the pair mated briefly before resuming the search for food.

It’s not every day one gets to see courting Mergansers. Pretty cool!
Feels like spring is right around the corner along with ducklings and new beginnings.
🙂 Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc
Canon 5Ds