Brewer's Blackbirds

These are the first for the season. They were in my backyard, looking for a meal. I wouldn't be surprised if they had been in my neighborhood last year, too, as migrating birds often head for the same place year after year. While Brewer's can be year round residents where I am, I don't often see them in my backyard during the winter. 

Female above, male below. 

 Male in the lilac bush. Note the distinctive yellow eye.

Not A Bird....

...but still cool. Here's a beaver dam I discovered. This one is holding back water in a slough of the Clark Fork River near Clark Fork, Idaho. The "reservoir" created by this dam is quite large, more of a small lake than a pond. And lots of waterfowl, mostly Lesser Scaups, Wood Ducks, and the ubiquitous Canada Geese.