Wood Ducks

Last autumn I spotted this little flock of Wood Ducks swimming by. For reasons I discuss more here, I suspect there are 3 female and 2 eclipse plumage male ducks here.

You can tell it's late summer or early autumn by the dense green covering the water, which gets pretty common around here. I suspect there's too much fertilizer runoff that feeds the growth. Though much of it dies off in the winter, it'll be back next summer.

I know many ducks will pair off well before breeding season, but since this was even before winter it's possible the ducks were just being social. Lots of birds like to hang out; there are more eyes to spot predators that way. The brambly/bushy vegetation near or in the water also makes Wood Ducks feel more comfortable; they figure they can hide in it if something threatening (like a guy with a camera) comes along.

October 7, 2021 at Duke Farms
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wood_Duck/overview



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