This is a group of juvenile Common Merganser. I found them early one morning exhibiting a behavior I had never seen before. Their mother was close by but they certainly were not shy of straying away from her. The juveniles would stop and eat by the edge of the river but sometimes they would all get a burst of energy and take off as if they all decided to have an impromptu race. And that is what they are doing in this photo. The races would only last a few seconds and things would calm down but out of nowhere they would challenge each other once again. It was very fun to watch especially in this decent size grouping.

BAM☺︎