Great Time to Watch Ducks

[David]

At our neighborhood pond there has been all kinds of interesting activity with the ducks. Let me give you a quick synopsis:
1) Through the winter there 5 pairs, and everything was pretty routine.
2) A couple of months ago, 2 pairs of Geese arrived, and have been around ever since.
3) As the Spring rains started, the ducks started wandering around away from the pond, often times crossing the road, and just having a great time every time it rained.
4) For a while it was rare to see all 5 pairs at the pond, because they were hanging out elsewhere, like by the creek and by the pool.
5) A couple of new mails arrived at the pond (without mates), and made trouble. They would go and try to mount the females, who already had mates. Just like cats, the males would grab at the females necks with their beaks. But the BIG difference was the mates of the females would also get into it, so there would this battle of two males both trying to get at the female at the same time. At first we thought they were trying to harm the female, but then we saw she wasn't trying too hard to get away, but it looked pretty scary noetheless.
6) Just a few days ago, we we delighted to see a mother proudly walking around with 5 new chicks. This is an amazing site, and we were able to get right next to them.
7) I'm still not sure where all the other females have gone, but we have 7-8 males, and the female at the pond. I assume the other females have been sitting on their eggs, and that we may have more chicks on the way! :)

[Purr]

It sounds just like a soap opera! :wink:

There's a female duck sitting on a nest of about 10 eggs in my neighbor's flower bed. She's right by a small bush, and she's in plain view. What a silly duck! I'd have thought she's pick someplace a little more hidden. :shock:

I think duck eggs have a gestation period of about 28 days, so I'll be keeping an eye out for ducklings in about 2 weeks. I can see the duck on the nest from my sunroom. :D

[darskayairene]

We have ducks only in the villages there. They walk up and down the villages' roads and all the time try to come under the car's wheels! :evil: Especially there are lot of them in the summer and it is very difficult to ride, because you have all the time be very attentive in order not to commit a crime :)
They say in our city we have only swans in one of the ponds, but I haven't seen them yet.

[Purr]

There have been sure signs Spring is here. There's a pair of young mallards around the condo community, looking around the neighborhood for a suitable nesting spot. They were in a neighbor's yard this morning.