It's cold in southern North Carolina. "Cold" is relative. My friends in northern areas will see it as just another day, but the sudden drop in temps from the 50s to the 20s is not the norm for this part of the world. The good news about the region where I live is that the extremes are not too extreme and when they are, they don't last long.

Wading birds often take advantage of the quick change in temps. Cold temperatures cause small fish and shrimps to move from the shallows to deeper water where the temps are not so extreme. As they move, the wading birds congregate along marsh creeks to forage. They need the food as much as the prey needs to escape the extremes. It's not uncommon to see 10 to 50 wading birds of multiple species gathered along creek channels. Gulls are often mixed in with the waders.

Living on the southeastern North Carolina coast offers a great opportunity to observe changes through the season and changes through weather patterns.