Winter time is duck season around Saturna. Duck and other birds spend time around the island, before going back up North… This is a trio of Harlequin ducks males (Histrionicus histrionicus – don’t you love that latin name?), swimming by the rocks.  More info about Harlequin Ducks here.

Their paddling leaves nice tracks in the water… Just below the tracks, you can see the circular “dive” of a feeding duck.

These flashy birds (well, the drakes are flashy anyway) are only around our waters during the winter, and return to mainland rivers and streams to breed and feed during the milder months.

I took the photo at the top of this post, of unexplained ripples and wavelets in the water, because it was intriguing. There were no boats nearby…