winter comes when the coot stands alone

In my part of the world we have a saying, "You know it's cold when the coot stands alone"
or that would be the rough translation in English :)

Thus this solitary freezing cold coot standing in the snowy banks along this frigid winter canal is testament to the harsh winter climate that we must endure here in the frozen wastelands of Belgium.

Canon EOS 7D 1/500 second F/5.6 ISO 500 105 mm

Canon EOS 7D 1/400 second F/5.6 ISO 500 105 mm

This has been my entry to this week's Black and White Photo Challenge them of Winter.

Thanks to @daveks , @papa-pepper, and guest judge @chrissysworld for sponsoring this week's challenge.