Duck Tales! (Still not what I expected to wake up to this morning)

[AlanThePig]

With the last thread almost full and a new clutch of ducklings I thought it might be time for another thread.

So this morning I was happily working away in the front garden when I happened to glance at the duck house, and saw two faces staring back....
Now I know our resident duck Egwina was on eggs, but I was convinced they were due to hatch somewhere around the end of the month. Quite surprised to spot ducklings.

As the day has worn on 14 little fluffy yellow ducklings have slowly emerged into the sunlight and launched themselves (not very gracefully) into the water. I say 14, I'm not 100% certain yet as they aren't keeping still enough to count and there might be more inside.

Difficult to photograph all together at present as some are in and some are out and they haven't yet come close enough to see. There was 12 (I think!) in this photo and 2 on the deck.
Congratulations Egwina!

Just walking down our street and thought of you

@Babysharkdoodoodood

Just walking down our street and thought of you

Been out most of the day and came home to only four ducks, including Duncan so we've had a couple of ducklings fledge. I'd like to this they were ours just wandering off. The time of year for the last clutches to fledge now so ducks in strange places seem to be the norm..😂 Do you have a pond close by @Babysharkdoodoodood?

@AlanThePig Lots of water nearby. A lovely huge private pond on the corner that I can see into on the bus home, plus streams, rivers and a canal.
Hint: It's City of Culture 😂

Makes sense @Babysharkdoodoodood I’d bet they were youngsters off exploring. They tend to end up doing the walk of shame 😂

We are now down to three. One duckling and Egwina and Duncan. Life is much more peaceful haha. Duncan is still mid eclipse moult so looks a scruffy bugger.

@KilledByWitches

Makes sense *@Babysharkdoodoodood* I’d bet they were youngsters off exploring. They tend to end up doing the walk of shame 😂

We are now down to three. One duckling and Egwina and Duncan. Life is much more peaceful haha. Duncan is still mid eclipse moult so looks a scruffy bugger.

Name change fail? There can't be too many massive ponds with awesome pild (pet/wild) ducks wet didn't work as well

That was me btw, forgot to change my name back. Long day haha

Strange things afoot here that I'm currently trying to figure out.

Some nights before I go to bed I flick on the CCTV. I often see the fox and the hedgehog at that time so I always have a look. Turned it on Friday evening and was met by a pair of little beady eyes peeping from the water over the bank.
As I watched, it, whatever it is, climbed up the bank and helped itself to the bread that had been knocked off the bird table.

I thought 'it' was probably a rat, and it headed for the new little round deck I had put it, so yesterday decking was pulled up and.....well, nothing, no nest, no droppings no food. Went back through the CCTV and found it several nights in a row, every time it comes from the direction of the water.

I cant see it well enough to decide whether it is a rat or a water vole. We certainly have holes in the bank in the area where it's heading and our local wildlife guy thought a few years ago that we might have a vole. But this is big and its tail, though not brilliantly visible looks too long.
Wildlife camera has yielded no results as whatever it is, it avoiding it.
Baffling.

Meanwhile the pond is quiet. We only have Egwina and Duncan, and of course the lovely Marvin. The food bill has decreased massively 😂

Placemarking to find out what this little creature is. The Loch Ness monster has been spotted on several occasions lately How far north are you?

@Thunderpunt

Placemarking to find out what this little creature is. The Loch Ness monster has been spotted on several occasions lately How far north are you?

Ha! Not that far north. 😂

Had a brief look at around its usual visiting time but couldn't see it and was missing the Indycar so turned it off. I really am leaning towards rat rather than vole, but I'll put the brief videos up tomorrow and see if anyone else has any thoughts.

I did see a rat last year, it just strolled up the driveway all casual one afternoon. A neighbour behind us apparently keeps chickens so it may have been headed there, but this was daylight and not popping up out of the water. That said, rats and bodies of water do go together so it's tricky to call.

I need to find poo (no, I'm not the poo troll 😂). Best way of telling according to Google. It's on my to do list....😳

dropping in to see if there are any October fluffballs this year!

@Heronatemygoldfish

dropping in to see if there are any October fluffballs this year!

Thankfully, no! Though we did have a few days where Egwina kept disappearing into her house and we were a bit worried she might be considering it 😂 It's a much cooler September/October than it was last year which I think probably caused the confusion.

We've only got Duncan, Egwina and Marvin the moorhen now so hopefully a nice, reasonably quiet time ahead until the fun starts again spring. (I've jinxed it now!!)

I've had a visitor this last week of a grey wagtail, not a bird I have ever seen before but to watch him hopping on the lily pads has been wonderful. Not the most common of birds anymore so wonderful to see. I think I put a video of him on my Instagram. Felt quite honoured to be visited!

Did you ever find out who the mystery pair of eyes belonged too, Alan?

@FGSWhatNow

Did you ever find out who the mystery pair of eyes belonged too, Alan?

Unfortunately not. I scoured for poo and found nothing and after I took the deck up and found nothing under there either it didn't return. I've put that back again now but not seen whatever it was.

With size and tail length I'm still leaning towards rat, it wouldn't be unusual near water.

My CCTV reviews have revealed we are regularly visited by a rather portly hedgehog though, which made me smile. I really wanted to leave a snack out for him but am mindful of encouraging our little rat friend so I've resisted so far.

I'd love a hedgehog in my garden.
A rat definitely not.
We have foxes and squirrels.

Any update @AlanThePig ?

Been thinking about the pond a lot over the last few days! Is there an update @AlanThePig?

I too have been wondering about this thread. There is more recent stuff on Instagram but obviously not on here.

Ahhhh I don't do instagram!

Oh how lovely 😍 we live close to a canal and have breeding ducks , geese and (hopefully) a couple of pairs of swans. Not seen the swans this year. They congregate on a bend in the canal because they know there is a good food source (especially in the winter) so far there are several clutches of ducklings and goslings. No cygnets atm but keep hoping. The locals all keep an eye on their progress😍

Any new pictures of your beautiful garden and ducks@AlanThePig? Hopefully they appreciated the mild winter.

Hello all!
We’re having a rather strange spring….

As you may recall Marv the moorhen Tom up residence on his own last year. Earlier this year DH was swearing he’d seen two. Try as I could I never saw another and at one point asked him if he thought he might need an eye test, then one afternoon I saw her myself. Marvina!

This is where the trouble started as they decided to make themselves a home in the little white duck house. Egwina was unimpressed and even though we had the temporary duck island took herself off to a neighbours garden in protest and laid under a a bush.

we hastily bought a new duck house (the duckingham palace we had discussed, but we found it cheaper to buy than construct) but by this point she had left her bush and gone off to nest elsewhere so it’s very very quiet here.
I’m not complaining too much, is saving me a fair bit of money on food but it is strange not having them.

Marv and marvina welcomed three baby moorhens about three weeks ago and promptly abandoned white duck house for duckingham palace. It has three bedrooms so hopefully things will return to normal. Well, as normal as things ever get here😂

Yay!! Baby moorhens 👏👏👏 hopefully Egwina will come back happily soon. She knows which side her bread is buttered!!

Lovely news about the moorhens. Hopefully Egwina will be back soon.

She has been nipping back for a wash and food, though not seen her for about a fortnight now.
had a few males kicking about but nothing as exciting as last year.

the moorhens I have mixed feelings about. They are quite skittish so very difficult to get close and photograph etc let alone feed. They also have HUGE talon esque feet , which on a tiny black ball of fluff is beyond creepy.
Give them their dues though, moorhens seem to have life sorted better than ducks. You recall how the neighbourhood cat took ducklings last year? It tried for the moorhens and the mother actually attacked the cat and sent it scarpering 😂

They're definitely very fierce little birds if needs be!