Ducks

[Pete D]

I have a pair of wild ducks that have been using my pond all year, they come and go when it pleases and now and then get some food from me in the form of fishing pellets.
They have had 2 clutches of young, 14 first time of which 4 survived and eventually flew, 10 second time of which none survived. These were all killed in the first week by the surviving 4 which I guess was down to food availability.

The 2 adults visit the pond most days and tend to overnight on the island. The last week or so I have only seen the male during the day and thought she was lost. Today I checked the nest site on the island as the male was acting a bit strange nearby, there she was sat on eggs................

Is it usual for ducks to brood this late ?

 

[MartinL]

Some will say, That's global warming!

Not unusual, but would be unusual for all of them to survive the winter unaided.

If you were in government I'd suggest a floating duck house with heated floor to help them through, I could even put it in for less than the usual £25K