After waiting patiently (or really not), the baby wood ducks finally started to hatch today as the first chicks began appearing out from the mother duck. I was worried when she had left the nest for most of one night when something scared her out of the box that maybe they wouldn’t hatch or that a racoon would get the eggs, so it was great to see the ducklings hatching. Of the 17 eggs laid, 14 of them hatched.
Hatching Has Started
A pair of Hooded Mergansers visited my pond yesterday, and the female checked out a couple of the duck houses. But she didn’t stay too long, probably since there were snowflakes coming into the opening.
Female Hooded Mergansers
The calendar may say that it is the first full day of spring, but ice formed on my pond when the temperature remained below freezing all day. Part of the pond remained open for the pair of mallards who have been visiting the last few days.
Mallards on Cold Spring Day
A male blue teal duck made a brief visit on my pond before continuing his journey north.
Visiting Blue Teal
I had a pair of geese standing on my snow pile today and not sure why they didn’t like the bare ground instead, but eventually they made their way down to my pond. The pond is still mostly covered by ice although the big patch drifted to one end so there was an open spot. And in that open slice of water, I spotted the first returning duck of the season. The male Hooded Merganser has black head with a large white patch that varies in size when his crest is raised or lowered,
First Duck of Spring
This juvenile duck hasn’t master the concept of flying yet. It has tried taking off several times but it only gained a few inches off the water before landing back down. So he needs a few more flying lessons.
Juvenile Duck
The mother mallard had a tough time corralling her ten ducklings as there were several who were testing out rapid swimming and spinning in the water. It is always fun to watch the ducklings playing in my pond, even if they are little for only a few days.
Mallard Ducklings
Wood ducks often search for nest cavities during the early morning with the male standing outside as female checks out the site. This male became extra excited when his mate flew into the duck house that he was standing on.
Wood Duck Watching
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
The hooded merganser on my pond this spring seem to chase each other around the pond a lot, but the other day it was two male mallards doing some fighting.
Just Before the Fight
