Ready for take off
Discussion
Although in general terms I am inclined to the view that Nature is best left to look after herself, I thought I might just share a recent intervention I made.
There are a couple of ponds in our garden of sufficient size to attract various water birds; mainly ducks, but moorhens, coots, geese heron and others also visit from time to time. In spring there is much squabbling and posturing amongst these visitors and then sadly plenty of broken eggshells as magpies and crows discover clutches. Occasionally a clutch goes undiscovered and hatches but even then cold, the lack of food and cover and ever present hungry predators means the mortality rate is depressingly high.
This Spring had been no different and though there were still plenty of visitors no chicks had survived.
Near the house is an 8ft high wall covered in ivy. I had been conscious of some comings and goings but the ivy is very dense and I didn’t want to disturb whoever was resident.
Then on 28th June there was an unusual amount of quacking and clucking and a few minutes later this little tribe jumped down from the wall and set off across the lawn heading for one of the ponds.
This is an extremely dangerous time for the tiny chicks as magpies and crows will swoop out of the sky and snatch them up in seconds. With that in mind but not wanting to frighten the mother I kept a prudent distance while at the same time shepherded them to the pond.
All 9 made it. But what next?
This time of year the ponds have plenty of lilies for cover and more flies and larvae for ducklings to eat. Also the nights are less cold so perhaps these little chaps have a better chance anyway. Nevertheless I decided to intervene to the extent of providing some food and also keeping a regular watch against predators and discouraging any that might be nosing around.
As regards food, our local farm supplies outlet had some bags of Chick Crumbs so I bought 2kg.
Next morning a head count showed all 9 present. But they a random skittish little creatures and scattered themselves all over the pond making it impossible for the mother to keep an eye on them all despite her urgent calling.
Sure enough by 30th June we were down to four. However this little group seemed to have formed an early bond and always went everywhere together. This made it much easier for the mother to keep some semblance of order.
At this point we were providing food four times a day. Unfortunately it wasn’t possible to just leave food for them as and when they wanted it because all the other larger ducks would simply take it within minutes. But at least our regular pattern of feeding seemed to work and though wary they would be waiting as we arrived. It also meant they had to spend time foraging for food on their own so perhaps not a bad thing.
Then on 4th July disaster. We were down to 3 and I feared for those that remained. Clearly something out there was still taking them. But on the upside the survivors, one grey, one beige and one dark brown were doing well and full of energy, confidently pushing through the lilies in search of tasty grubs and flies.
My feeling was that if we could help them through the next four or five days they would be past the worst. And so it proved. Regular feeding, watching and general presence in that area of the garden kept predators at bay. The weather was warm and dry and now they were too big for crows and magpies. The heron remained a danger but was discouraged whenever it was spotted gliding silently into its favourite hiding place in the rushes.
According to the books, ducks fly after 50 days so sometime this week end should be their first flight.
The end of the beginning.
There are a couple of ponds in our garden of sufficient size to attract various water birds; mainly ducks, but moorhens, coots, geese heron and others also visit from time to time. In spring there is much squabbling and posturing amongst these visitors and then sadly plenty of broken eggshells as magpies and crows discover clutches. Occasionally a clutch goes undiscovered and hatches but even then cold, the lack of food and cover and ever present hungry predators means the mortality rate is depressingly high.
This Spring had been no different and though there were still plenty of visitors no chicks had survived.
Near the house is an 8ft high wall covered in ivy. I had been conscious of some comings and goings but the ivy is very dense and I didn’t want to disturb whoever was resident.
Then on 28th June there was an unusual amount of quacking and clucking and a few minutes later this little tribe jumped down from the wall and set off across the lawn heading for one of the ponds.
This is an extremely dangerous time for the tiny chicks as magpies and crows will swoop out of the sky and snatch them up in seconds. With that in mind but not wanting to frighten the mother I kept a prudent distance while at the same time shepherded them to the pond.
All 9 made it. But what next?
This time of year the ponds have plenty of lilies for cover and more flies and larvae for ducklings to eat. Also the nights are less cold so perhaps these little chaps have a better chance anyway. Nevertheless I decided to intervene to the extent of providing some food and also keeping a regular watch against predators and discouraging any that might be nosing around.
As regards food, our local farm supplies outlet had some bags of Chick Crumbs so I bought 2kg.
Next morning a head count showed all 9 present. But they a random skittish little creatures and scattered themselves all over the pond making it impossible for the mother to keep an eye on them all despite her urgent calling.
Sure enough by 30th June we were down to four. However this little group seemed to have formed an early bond and always went everywhere together. This made it much easier for the mother to keep some semblance of order.
At this point we were providing food four times a day. Unfortunately it wasn’t possible to just leave food for them as and when they wanted it because all the other larger ducks would simply take it within minutes. But at least our regular pattern of feeding seemed to work and though wary they would be waiting as we arrived. It also meant they had to spend time foraging for food on their own so perhaps not a bad thing.
Then on 4th July disaster. We were down to 3 and I feared for those that remained. Clearly something out there was still taking them. But on the upside the survivors, one grey, one beige and one dark brown were doing well and full of energy, confidently pushing through the lilies in search of tasty grubs and flies.
My feeling was that if we could help them through the next four or five days they would be past the worst. And so it proved. Regular feeding, watching and general presence in that area of the garden kept predators at bay. The weather was warm and dry and now they were too big for crows and magpies. The heron remained a danger but was discouraged whenever it was spotted gliding silently into its favourite hiding place in the rushes.
According to the books, ducks fly after 50 days so sometime this week end should be their first flight.
The end of the beginning.
Edited by lowndes on Wednesday 14th August 17:47
Nice one! It's tough being a young mallard, you helped those 3 out loads. PS your garden is stunning. Gassing Station | All Creatures Great & Small | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff