The Mallard Is Back

Our little feather tenant came back last week. On Tuesday we noticed that there were 12 eggs tucked neatly under a layer of down feathers in the rosemary bush, but the mama was not there. She started with the incubation the next morning, so around Aug. 18th there should be another dozen little ducklings.

I thought it was soon for the duck to lay the eggs again, but, hey, it's the duck business. :)

Duckling Update

The ducks were still in the bush when I got home last night. I changed their water and was surprised how dirty it was. The mom was happy with the new fresh water to drink. Few minutes after I went inside the house, the babies were outside the nest and in the water bowl! I removed the deep dish because I was worried they might have trouble getting in it, and here they were, five squeezed in on a little puddle. They quickly rushed back into the nest when they saw me, but then the other two from the back came out and took a swim. Adorable!

They didn't come out any more for the evening, and since they were so active last night I knew their departure is very close. This morning at 8 am they were already gone and there was an empty nest. :( Mom picked probably the best time to take them to the water, because there are barely any cars and people around on an early Saturday morning. I am sad that I didn't get to walk with them, but they didn't need to wait for me. They are wild ducks, and it is best for them to have minimal dependence on humans. The pond is just five houses away, and they only had one small street to cross that is used only by the residents there.

Maybe I'll see them at the pond in a few days, acting all grown up. You can come back any time, mama duck, and use the safety on our rosemary bush again!

Post Update:
The ducklings made it all to the pond safe. I saw all 12 of them in the afternoon with duck that, I suppose, is their dad, playing and grooming on the shore, and even already trying to eat bread crumbs the locals were throwing at them. Their swimming instinct has also kicked in.
The mama duck, on the other hand, decided to come back to the place she called home for the last month - our rosemary bush. As I was getting ready to trim the overgrown branches, she landed on the driveway and was just starring at me. I gave her some water, and she drank at least 20 times. Then she took some bread pieces out of my hand, and was still just standing there. I continued with my other yard work and she eventually slowly approached the former nest, examined it for several minutes and then made her way inside. I guess she just missed her own bed. :)

Storm And the Ducklings

Last night Austin had an electrifying storm and has seen a tornado touch down within the city limits, something that I don't remember ever happening. Some areas had wind bursts of 80 mph and golf ball-sized hail at 1 3/4". Our neighbourhood was on the lower end of the storm, but we still had very large winds, few quarter sized hails and very heavy rain - which we didn't have any of in the last several weeks.

In all of that, our ducklings from the rosemary bush decided to make an appearance just yesterday. When we came back home from work, I noticed one egg half-shell next to the nest as I was starting to change the water and food for the duck. When I looked closer, the little yellow fuzz balls were peeping from underneath the proud mama. When I learned of the intensity of the storm we were expecting, I removed the bowls in front of the nest, so that the ducks don't get hurt if the bowls start flying. I was really afraid for the safety of the babies in all that rain and wind.

After the first blow of the storm, I went out with an umbrella to check up on them. Their nest was well protected by the sturdy bush branches, so much so that even the egg shells did not move. The mama had spread her wings and covered all the ducklings so I couldn't see any of them. She was completely wet.

This morning, as I was surveying any damage to the roof, another duck of the same kind, possibly a male, flew onto the front yard and was checking us out. After just few minutes, he flew back in the direction of the pond. When I looked at the nest, the babies were there by themselves, all huddled together and each trying to get in the center and away from the camera. There were 11 of them. I couldn't resist to pet those little cute feathery balls. After few minutes, while I was back in the house, the mom came back, and was guarding them again.

I read that the ducklings should leave the nest within a day or two after hatching and walk with the mama back to the water. I really hope they are still there this evening and I can escort them in safety to the water over the weekend.

Rosemary Babies

A black duck from our neighborhood pond has decided to make her nest in the rosemary bush in our front yard. I noticed her while trimming the bush, and had to stop so not to blow her cover. She hid herself deep inside and didn't make appearance even though we were mowing and edging around her. We didn't see her walking around the yard before, so I don't know when she gets out to eat. When my friend's dog Rio was sniffing the bush the other day I noticed many white fuzz balls, and thought it must have been from a rabit which we saw few times in the last couple of weeks.
I think she already has the eggs because she wouldn't move from the nest, so the babies should come out of the rosemary bush within the couple of weeks.