October07

Tuesday, 2nd

I've been amused for a little while now how eager the top 9 are to get down to the duck pond on first release, and how they stay down there all day until late afternoon - when the food supply there has been exhausted, usually, and all 14 troop uphill to set about the second container.

But once or twice I've noticed, when the top lot have been unusually slow in turning up, the bottom 5 have gone off to look for them. So it was this morning:

"They've not turned up. We can hear them, though. Let's go look for them."

"Well, they're not here. Might as well see what we can find in this bed."

Candida has gone the wrong way and can't find her way out to join her group.

I took pity on them and opened the nearside gate - they were out like a shot ...

...... hotfooting it down the hill.

I apologize for the "quality" of the pictures, but it was early morning and not properly light yet!

What I'd really hoped to capture was what I'd witnessed a couple of days before, when the two groups had slid, single file, into the duck pond from opposite ends, coming together in the middle. The best laid plans, eh?

Sunday, 14th October 2007

Yesterday I wanted to see how long it would take before they'd exit from the open gate opposite the house if I left their nearest gate shut.

The 5 from the duck pond came up pretty soon and gradually "worked" their way around to the front of the house. I thought "any minute now the 9 will come out and join them or else these 5 will go in". Neither happened; the 5 didn't dare go in but just tootled back to the other gate to see if it was open now.

Next time I looked they were all together again - I'd missed the moment when the 9 finally decided to go the long way round.

This morning I thought I'd be ready with the camera and catch them all streaming out, but they had other ideas. They were already behind me at the duck pond when I was filling the water buckets. You just can't rely on them doing what you want!

But I really wanted to write about Friday and Saturday when we had very welcome and popular visitors:

Ok, I cheated. The ducks weren't really being herded by Gerd and Maria - they were racing downhill to get to the gate in the fence ..... that's why they're blurred - ahem. And can you see poor Rellchen on the far right; she's still limping along, but there are signs of improvement and I hope she'll be back to normal very soon.

Thank you again, Maria and Gerd, for coming such a long way and spending time with us, and for that huge number of presents you brought me!

Sunday, 21st October 2007

Another busy week has gone by. I'm thinking I have a cheek to call these duck diaries, but can't find an expression for writing once a week - "duck weeklies" doesn't have the same ring to it for me!

I'm also thinking how contrary I am. Not so long ago I was dying for all our ducks and drakes to spend their days together again, and now that they do I'm moaning because they don't come around the house any more where I can observe them. I have a theory that they believe they must defend the duck pond against the waterhens because they make a racket as soon as those make an appearance to pinch their food or take a swim.

Yes, a substantial number of the little tykes is still about, although they appear to have moved headquarters into trees a few metres along from the pond - I see them running that way every time I turn up. The second batch of babies are grey "teenagers" now, and they're as adept at flying into the trees as their older siblings and their parents.

We've had overnight frosts 4 times this week (the lovely dahlias in the picture above next to Gerd and Maria have turned to mush now), and after the first surprise when the hose down to the duck pond had frozen and I had to lug the buckets of water all the way from the tap by the garage, I filled all the containers last thing at night (on John's sensible advice!). So the following morning the waterhens had had no warning - water running into buckets - when I turned up with the food. The panic amongst them was something to behold, running and flying all over the place. One of the young ones flew into that branch overhanging the pond amidst the warning cries of the parents. Then I was amazed to see a bird the size of a pidgeon, only slimmer and darker, swoop and knock that youngster off the branch, continuing its flight into a tree next door. The young waterhen immediately joined the others through the bog garden and along the fence into the ditch. I still don't know if the one that knocked it off the branch was a bird of prey or one of the parents telling it a bit forcefully to join the others.

I don't have any photos of the waterhens this week, but of course I have taken several of the ducks, as ever:

The two above are of one day early in the week when these 9 decided to stop in/by the little pond until the early afternoon, when John took pity on them and opened their gate by the greenhouses.

Here they are having a great time on the duck pond,

coming out now and again for a wash and brush up,

until somebody decides its time to go, and they're off:

It doesn't take long, though, before they come back,

and resume their activities on the duck pond. In this one Blob and Captain are having a little confrontation (on the left, in front of big Hedda):

I'm very sad to say that all four "baskets" are now devoid of greenery. Whether its all the waterhens' doing or the ducks 'helped' I cannot say. I just hope that the roots have anchored themselves and will re-sprout in the Spring!

Wednesday, 24th October 2007

Lovely Caroline Crocker came up immediately with a suggestion when I was in a dilemma with weekly duck diary entries in my previous writing: "Waddle Weeklies"! Great alliteration, Caroline, but the 'waddle' bit could only be applied to our two remaining Campbells and Sweetie, maybe. The runners might be offended!!

Wednesday, 31st October 2007

The little entry above is all I managed last week before my birthday festivities took up all my time! I was more than well blessed with cards, phone calls, visits and an embarrassing amount of presents. For 3 days our E-mailing was out of action [I'd messed up the computer again], and I was considering writing big thank you's in these diaries as several of you, I know, check here to find out what's going on at White Gables. Then my brilliant son turned up once more and put everything to rights, thank you again, Carl!

Well, today is my last chance to put in an October entry, I'll try and catch up.

In case anybody is wondering what happened in Germany with all the protests and petitions, it unfortunately turned out as was feared and the "lock-up" is now the rule. As far as I know only one farmer [keeping thousands of geese] is refusing to comply publicly. Everybody else seems to try and carry on as normal, trusting on regional exemptions to the law and hoping that no nosy neighbour reports them. Various parliamentary factions, nature organisations and bird associations are still endeavouring, though, to get the law amended.

All our ducks and drakes are well and spending time together at either pond as they please. Rellchen I saw limping again today, when two days ago I thought she was back to normal - I don't know where she hurts herself, maybe in the rush of escaping the hut in the mornings. Since the clocks went back at the weekend I've been having a bit of trouble with the 5 at the duck pond at bed time. It's Anabelle, really, she doesn't seem to want to leave the other group, yet doesn't quite have the courage to join them in their hut. Thinking back to the time before we split them into 2 groups, Anabelle was often to be found with the larger section - maybe her best pals are there. She always makes a big racket on release in the mornings and has a like response from someone in the top lot. I think the earlier bed times may have something to do with it as well.

We haven't had a single egg for over a month apart from a soft shell lying about somewhere once or twice. I've been well put out having to buy eggs after having been used to giving them away by the dozen!

I surprised the waterhen family this morning. I'd only seen 2 or 3 of them running away when I'd gone down for duck release and water bucket filling. But I had to go back down there a little later to get flowers for the luncheon club tables, and they hadn't reckoned on that - I counted at least 8 of them, panic stricken, running and flying into the trees over the ditch. I'm really chuffed they're still about in numbers although the ducks seem to think otherwise. Not only do they have to defend their territory against these pesky little things but a great number of hen pheasants can often be seen on the branches behind the pond!

I can't really close October 2007 without at least one photo, so here you are:

That's Circle who looks as if she's raising an eyebrow, front left.