Falmer pond remains in danger of overflowing, and the surrounding grass banks are sodden. In other words, it’s almost perfect conditions for ducks and none more so than this jaunty pair of Muscovy ducks.
They first appeared at the pond in 2013 but have become firm fixtures, either waddling on the banks (as here), or paddling their way across the water. They can fly (which seems an almost impossible task when you see them), but I suspect their range may be limited. As ducks go they are very human-friendly which makes me think that hey were originally farm birds. They expect to be fed and rush (as best they can) to any passing walker. I’m not a good bet though, as I never feed the wildlife at the pond.
This is the female…
And the male…
Further round the pond, I spotted another regular sitting precariously above the water.
The rat eventually made the decision to take the short swim across to a slightly more densely covered area where it scurried into the bank and out of the wet.
Pretty is still waving the flag for the local foxes. Here she is in the garden in the earlier hours of Tuesday morning.
Camera note: all photos taken with the Canon 7D and EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L USM IS lens, apart from the one of Pretty the fox which was taken with the EF 24-105 F4L IS USM lens.
Darko Gedelovski
8 Jan 2014So unusual looking ducks, like turkeys 😀
Words
8 Jan 2014Darko, don’t they just! Very odd looking birds indeed.
Andy
8 Jan 2014Muscovy Ducks have quite the personality and are usually very friendly.
Words
8 Jan 2014Andy, they are great characters and the locals have come to love them. 😀