Why a duck’s feet don’t freeze in winter and other chilly questions

Why a duck’s feet don’t freeze in winter and other chilly questions

This story was originally published in December 2021. We were driving across the Mount Desert Island causeway the other day when I spotted a group of ducks bobbing in the ocean waves. Flashes of white had me guessing that they were either buffleheads or eiders, both common off the coast of Maine. But the birds were too far away for me to positively identify them, and in just a few seconds, we’d left the water behind. The brief wildlife spotting …