Hooded Merganser

There was a whole flock of them visiting outside my door today.  I love the way they take off -  it's described in my bird book as "pattering along the surface with rapid wing-beats" which is exactly what it looks like.  So far, I've been either in the wrong spot or sans camera when they decide to take off.  It's a challenge but I'll keep trying since they don't always visit the water near my place.  If they're here tomorrow I'll try to be more vigilant and hopefully catch them in flight.