Mallard Family?

After yesterday's squirrel I took a walk on the Norwottuck Rail Trail in Amherst, hoping for a second straight wildlife blip.

Mallards are perhaps not the optimum in the wildlife department, but I literally did not see another bird. Another goal (in a sense more important) was to accustom my body to carrying my long lens plus tripod in preparation for our trip later this week (with guaranteed birds). I've had significant shoulder issues over the past year (now apparently gone, knock-on-wood), and thus I need to work up to the effort. I've been doing Nordic Track for months, and shlepping my tripod again in the past few days.