Around 10 o’clock Sergeant Margie and I went to William Land Park and walked through the WPA Rock Garden and around the two larger ponds.  Along with the more ubiquitous ducks and geese (Mallards, Runners Ducks, Muscovy Ducks, Peking Ducks, Chinese Geese and Canadian Geese), I also got to see a group of Hooded Mergansers (Lophodytes cucullatus), two handsome males and a female.  You hardly ever get to see those, so I was glad to be able to get some photos and video of them.  “…Adult male Hooded Mergansers are black above, with a white breast and rich chestnut flanks. The black head has a large white patch that varies in size when the crest is raised or lowered, but is always prominent. Hooded Mergansers find their prey underwater by sight. They can actually change the refractive properties of their eyes to improve their underwater vision. In addition, they have an extra eyelid, called a “nictitating membrane,” which is transparent and helps protect the eye during swimming, like a pair of goggles…”  We walked around for a couple of hours and then headed back home.