This morning I had a pair of Blue-winged Teal ducks visit my pond. They are among the latest ducks to arrive in the spring and one of the first to leave in fall. They build their nests on the ground but so far the Blue-winged Teal only seem to visit my pond in the spring but don’t hang around to nest.
Visiting Blue-winged Teals
I had a pair of Blue-winged Teal ducks stopping at my pond for a brief stay on their way north. They are one of the last variety of ducks to migrate north in the spring and also one of the first to leave in the fall. Blue-winged Teal are the second most abundant duck in the country behind the Mallard, but they don’t seem to stay more than a few days at my pond. But they also don’t make use of my duck houses as they make their nest on the ground.
Blue-winged Teal Pair
Some years when the ice first comes off my pond, I will get some visiting ducks that might hang around for a few days as the migrate to their summer nesting sites. This year I didn’t spot extras passing through like these Blue-winged Teals which did visit a couple years in the past.
Visiting Blue-winged Teals
Dabbling ducks, like the Blue-winged Teals, forage in shallow waters such as flooded fields and marshes. They feed by tipping up rather than diving to reach aquatic vegetation and other food items. When taking flight, they spring into the air instead of pattering across the water.
Male Blue-winged Teals
It is a good thing the south winds haven’t blown in any of the returning ducks yet since my pond still has a layer of ice covering it. So far the Blue-winged Teal have only visit my pond for a few weeks each spring but haven’t stayed to nest so apparently my area isn’t appealing to the females, who decide where to nest by flying over possible areas and she may take several days to decide.
Too Early for Ducks
With a long string of sub-zero nights, there haven’t been any warm days to melt snow or the ice on my pond so it will be a while any ducks will land there. These blue-winged teals have only visited my pond and haven’t nested there.
The Teals
When I was outside one day last week looking for any hint of some wildflower, a pair of ducks were circling to land in my pond but they spotted me and flew off. I didn’t recognize the smaller duck species as each spring I get some temporary visitors on their journey farther north. The next evening they did land in the pond but since it was so windy that day, they stayed hidden behind the long grass so I still couldn’t identify them
A couple of years ago, I did have some visiting Blue-winged Teal ducks stop over on their trek back from their winter stay in South America but since my pond is too small, they ventured elsewhere after a day of resting.
Pair of Blue-winged Teal Ducks
Well it seems that it wasn’t only kids playing hooky yesterday, as there was a small group of ducks playing in the pond yesterday. The Blue-winged Teal ducks were swimming and were napping in the warm sun. It was interesting watching one of the male ducks tuck its head on its back and go to sleep but the wind was strong enough, that it was pushing the floating duck to the other side of the pond. He would wake up and swim back to the other side and then settle down for another nap and ride.
When evening approached, then the some ducks explored the pond for food while others were bobbing their heads up in the mating ritual but it appeared some of the males weren’t too popular with the girls.
Blue-winged Teal Ducks
