Monday, April 27, 2009
April 27
We discovered a Mallard duck was nesting in our Bermuda grass next to the house on Saturday. She had seven eggs. But unfortunately we are not the only ones to discover the nest. This morning, the mama duck is gone. There are broken and cracked eggs rolled about in the garden. At least two eggs are still whole, so I know it was not that they hatched. No ducklings in sight. The power of nature in my own back yard. I think this may be the Mallard pair that nested in the woods last year. I saw her one day with at least twelve ducklings as she tried to herd them all to the water. The next morning I saw the coyote and never saw the ducklings again. Perhaps they will be more successful at raising young next year.
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Ohh that's terribly sad. Have you considered raising the two remaining eggs??
ReplyDeleteThe coyote isn't the bad guy, of course. He's just doing what he's supposed to do, as distressing as that may seem from our narrow perspective.
ReplyDeleteOne evening last week, while strolling through my old neighborhood with Lisa and the beagle, we were startled to see a Mallard duck perched, gargoyle-like, on an apartment rooftop, king of all he surveyed.
Quite an odd sight.