ducks is ducks?

To most people all ducks are roughly the same, ok, so you get white ones and brown ones and the kind children feed stale bread to in the park.  Ours, of course, are quite different, they're upright and don't waddle - at least the well-bred ones don't.

I've always found it fascinating to watch their behaviour and the interaction between drakes and ducks, they have likes and dislikes just like we do.  Take Tuts, for instance, a fierce little devil attacking and driving away the brown twins and the fawn&white Gertie mercilessly.  And then he shows that gentle behaviour towards the handicapped Dotty.  The attraction appears mutual, I've seen Tuts standing by her side near her hut in the enclosure and her flattening herself invitingly for him.

Captain is the "big bad wolf" in everyone's opinion, every time he comes up on a raid he causes the wildest shrieks from all ducks and the three drakes from this end try frantically to push him off whichever duck he's caught, usually a slow or handicapped one like Honey or Dotty, the fighting thus causing more distress for the poor duck underneath.  I have to watch out about 6 pm these days when Captain usually comes up.  I had to laugh the other morning during my "duck run" when only Captain and Anke had been let out.  I was changing the water near Dotty's hut when suddenly the 5 girls inside screamed in panic, and when I looked up Captain had come up - so they knew his voice from inside the closed hut!

Three days ago Dotty was caught again under Captain and the other drakes attempting to drive him off, and so, for a rest, I kept the enclosure shut for most of the days.  This is Dotty lying down at the back, Gertie in front, very peaceful!.

I let out the twins and Billie out now and again when they come to the gate, they can cope better with the boys' treatment.

This morning I could see again that Gertie has an eye for the black Jay.  The gate was only open a hand's width, Billie outside at the food bowls and Jay standing by.  And there came Gertie on the inside, looking at Jay and slowly flattening herself and nodding invitingly.  He did try and get through the gate to her but found the gap too small.  Then the other two boys, Ben and Tuts came up and Gertie ran away shrieking.

I only took a few more photos while in the garden clipping the "caterpillar" and the "cottage loaf":

Views from the windows show that the lilac has exploded [- and the white one in front of the garage isn't far behind], and that a heron landed on the cedar again; Annie once got a brilliant shot of one taking off from there.

                                             

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The part entry above is as far as I got last Sunday 4th morning, that lunchtime we got an emergency call to have John admitted to hospital, and that's where he's been since.  Most of you who read this will know what his trouble is, he's had some treatment and will have to undergo much more, but if all goes well today he should be released home tonight.