Cyn's Nature Notes: Duck and drakes

Tuesday 9 April 2013

Duck and drakes

During the last week the ducks came back, three again this year, two drakes and one duck. The males are mallards, but I'm not sure what type of duck the female is, she does not look like a typical female mallard. I have looked through hundreds of female duck pictures and found two similar to her, the first was described as an interbred duck, the other a campbell khaki duck, I still don't know what type she really is. She has the body shape of a mallard, except that it is slightly larger, and is in shades of beige and light brown, the tail and wing ends are creamy white. There is a stripe across the wing the same as a mallard has, except that it is mid to dark brown, with a white stripe either side.

One of the males is welcome and accepted by the female, while the other is just tolerated and lives on the fringes of the other two's existence, if he dares to try eating with them the preferred male will attack him. Sometimes when the other two are asleep, he will creep close to the female and settle himself down to sleep. Should she wake up and find him there, she lowers her head, stretches her neck and continually pokes him with her beak, driving him back and soon away

Occasionally when the other male is asleep, he manages to mate with the female, of course the preferred male hears what is going on, wakes up and makes haste to rescue his partner by attacking his competitor.

Perhaps the only time the two drakes are united is when marauding males fly into the garden to mate with the female, then they are as one when they rush to save the female. As soon as things settle back to normal, the unwelcome drake of the pair, knows his place and again moves away to the outskirts of their relationship.

Sometimes he forgets his place in the relationship and instead of keeping his distance, wanders up toward the female, whereupon the beady- eyed favoured drake on spotting the situation, rushes at his competitor neck outstretched and parallel to the ground, beak low and open, but before contact can be made the under dog turns tail and runs.

Interestingly once again they are spending time on the roof as they did last year.

P.S. Mallards are dabbling ducks as opposed to diving ducks.

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About this Blog

When we moved to our present home in December 1987, I was very ill and bedridden. My garden was a life-saver, although it was very different then. The first thing I did was to put up bird-feeders, and long hours were spent lying indoors in a recliner. This was when I discovered many things. Do you know the underside of every blue tit’s tail is differently marked? Gradually, over the years, the garden changed. We put in shrubs and plants that would not only enhance the garden, but would also be good for wildlife. The first rabbit we saw was so joyful for us. The deer eat the flowers, prune the apple trees, eat the marrow, and are wonderful to watch. Foxes have been a major part of our wildlife. We have fed them each night for more than 20 years. They are such a delight, especially in late summer and early autumn when there are youngsters. They behave like puppies and are great fun to watch.

I love all wildlife: the mason bees that nest in the brickwork of the bungalow, the hornets that last year made their home in the roof above our bedroom, the bees currently nesting in the roof above the bathroom. On a hot evening, if you stand quietly in the bathroom, you can hear this amazing sound: it is very rhythmic and reminds me of the waves at the seaside. It is made by the beating of the bees’ wings as they fan their nest to keep the temperature at the right level -- how many people have heard that sound? I feel so privileged.

Obviously, I feed the birds. When I open the window in the morning I call “Come on Bobby and Blackie”, and one followed swiftly by the other they fly immediately to the bird table. Each morning, on rising, I make my way to the kitchen and find the squirrels already sitting on the window ledge waiting to be fed. Winter brings the moorhens and spring time the mallards. Our pond is a poor effort from a human point of view, but wild creatures see it differently. On summer days, the grass snakes spend long hours in the pond: eating the fish, froglets, toadlings, newts, and any other living creature they can swallow. Although I hate to see the pond emptied this way, I do enjoy the snakes and feel they are an important part of the balance of nature in the garden. Watching a dragonfly nymph climbing out of the pond, up a plant stalk, and then over the next few hours gradually transforming into a beautiful dragonfly -- these are contented hours well spent.

It has been my pleasure to write and publish a nature column each month. I am always delighted to hear how much pleasure this brings to my readers. I have often been asked if I have written a book, so I am making more of my writings and photography available through this web site and blog.