September05

Friday, 2nd

Had a very busy gardening day and thought the ducks might have wanted to join me, but they didn't come out of their enclosure at all until I coaxed them out in the early afternoon, and shut the gate on the greenhouse side so they couldn't run straight back in. I did some weeding in the strawberry bed, and was amazed to turn up a newt, about 2 inches long, with one trowel full of earth. This was at a spot a long way from any of the ponds. I had no idea that newts bury themselves - must read up! - and I quickly covered it over again.

After just a short time the ducks remembered the way to the frog pond and ran off, and that's when I saw that one of the big ones was limping heavily. Oh dear, not more trouble! It was Clarrie, who had obviously hurt herself somehow, and I wondered if that had been why they hadn't wanted to come out this morning.

I watched carefully while they were foraging in the orchard. Clarrie sat down a lot or limped behind if the group had moved on some distance:

She didn't show any signs of distress and managed to keep up with the others a lot better than GG had done.

Before turning in for the evening I took a snap of John trimming the diamond beds
with the ducks foraging on the main path in the distance:

Saturday, 3rd

A dull morning so far (09.30), but a sunny day is promised.
The ducks came across to the frog pond early, and although Clarrie is still limping a bit it doesn't appear to be anything serious. That's Clarrie in this picture, top right among the ducks, having just got out without difficulty:

Sunday, 4th (Susi and Mark's wedding anniversary)

Oh dear! I think we have 7 drakes and just 3 ducks. Something I've been worried about for some time. Even if GG had survived it would be a gross imbalance.

I took my morning coffee sitting on the steps watching the ducks, and had close-up views of them. The beginnings of curly tail feathers could be seen on 7 of them, here they are on the Twin and three others:

This would explain why they are all bigger, stronger and more aggressive.

Yesterday evening I was extremely worried about the "Baby" who, on returning to base from the frog pond behaved just like GG had done, spreading out wings and collapsing, picking herself up again and collapsing again and again all the way into the enclosure where John picked her/him (he thought it was a "he" then) up and put him into the pond, where he was immediately pecked at by others.

When I let them out this morning I was afraid that Baby would be dead, but no. They all came out flapping and flying, the Twin all the way from the hatch into the water, and no sign of weakness or limping from Clarrie - who I'm now convinced is a Clarence. And there I'd been on the Internet for 2 hours last night looking at hundreds of duck diseases and their symptoms and treatments and worrying myself sick!

So we now have Donald and Splodge, as before, also the Captain, Clarence, Blob or Bob, "Baby" Bomber and the Twin. What to do, though, with all these drakes. If it's not a problem now it certainly will be early next year. I'd never consider killing our drakes for meat, although people do, and I don't fancy much selling them or giving them away because, squabble as they might, they all stick together and go everywhere together. Do we buy some more ducks and enlarge the accommodation? Problems, problems .......

Friday, 9th

We were woken up at 05.30 this morning by an almighty crash; we both jumped out of bed, it sounded close and frightening. What on earth could it had been? It was still dark, but as the loud crack had conveyed "wood" to our minds John soon sussed out that it must have been the ¾ dead ash come down at last.

Yes, it was. This was my first view from the upstairs window, Harlequin sitting there in front quite unperturbed:-




A similar view from early last year shows the ash in the top right corner, and also shows why I thought it might have hit the duck hut if it had still been standing there. But I found on closer inspection that it would have missed it. I needn't have worried about our ducks getting terrified by the loud crash, either, as they came flying out of the hut as normal.

The other things I had been worried about being squashed were the pumpkins (they're in the area where the duck hut had been) and my sweet smelling (in winter) Daphne odora, but it was just missed (the arrow below shows the daphne):


What it didn't miss was one of the hydrangeas and a cotoneaster I had clipped into a 'lollipop' (there was a bird's nest inside it I hadn't seen before), branches had been sheared off a cherry tree and one of the weeping birches which looks as if it was being embraced by the fallen tree below right, and of course there is huge damage in the beds and grassed areas underneath.





I've placed a couple of arrows to point out the hydrangea and lollipop cotoneaster. We were lucky really it didn't come down when we were working in that area - John had planned to today! For years big branches had been falling off it and we're amazed it lasted as long as it did. Biggest shame is for the wildlife. There was a huge colony of jackdaws called it their home, they used to fight it out with squirrels and woodpeckers over nesting holes. The ash must have been home to a myriad of other small creatures, too, as the trunk and branches are peppered with holes of all sizes.


But why did it come down this morning? There hadn't been any wind or an excess of rain recently. Looking at the hole where the roots had been it looks crumbly and dry like a sandpit (that's my foot in the top left corner, by the way):
Could the trunk have been hollowed out by woodworm or beetles? And what do you think: is this a woodpecker hole?


When the clear-up gets under way (the ash was standing on our neighbour's side of the ditch) I'm hoping to find something long lost: the little green rubber duck - see "Rubber Duck Mystery" of 10.July04 in these diaries.

[Addendum on 6.11.2005: I still haven't found the little green one]

The ducks were a bit reluctant to start their foraging in the orchard, having had their landscape "rearranged", but they came eventually!

Sunday, 11th

The weather was truly horrible yesterday, much worse, I thought, than forecast.

Nobody has rung from next door to say what they are going to do with the fallen tree, but Peter and his two boys came all afternoon and helped John clear as much as possible - in the rain! - so we can use the paths again.

The ducks weren't impressed with the weather, either, and didn't come out to the frog pond until almost 3 in the afternoon, with an awful lot of wing flapping to dry off a bit. I took a snap of them just outside the conservatory, and thought it a good idea to put their names against them. Doesn't the Twin look different? Has more of the look of a mallard than a fawn and white runner duck. The new chest feathers have stayed grey.

The weather this morning started much as it left off last night, but it did cheer up later. The ducks came out of the greenhouse gate just after I finished picking mountains of tomatoes, and went to the frog pond from there.

Thursday, 15th

Another thoroughly miserable day; too wet to go into the garden to plant the newly arrived perennials from Crocus.

Tuesday, however, was horrendously busy for us with John chainsawing the fallen tree most of the day and me shredding/chipping the smaller stuff all afternoon. Our neighbour didn't want the wood so we can store it as we like. Unfortunately I damaged 4 of my fingers using the pruning saw to prepare the thinner branches for chipping, and with John haven taken skin off both arms carrying the big logs we've both been in the wars and are utterly exhausted.

While I was shredding on Tuesday the ducks came foraging the furthest they've been yet, right up to the trapeze beds, but as we were away from home most of the day yesterday they didn't come out much then.

Today they've been out in the wet all day, in the pouring rain and drizzle. It's amazing how they love to "snuffle" in shallow water (preferably muddy!) - our first 4 were the same. It's now almost 6 and they've just returned to 'home base' after spending some time in the puddles in front of the garage:

They didn't cross in front of the garage because John had the ladder out against it to fix the security light, and they took fright - they frighten so easily! - and tried to get into their enclosure from the greenhouse end.

Friday, 23rd

Quite a change in the weather today, cool, dark and drizzly, then proper rain until early afternoon. But yesterday was glorious again. John and I had our cup of tea on the rickety bench above the frog pond, as we tend to do when the weather is fine. The ducks must have remembered from the day before when John found over a dozen snails in an upturned plant pot under the bench, and they came rushing up to see if there were any more.

John could only find 2 more which Fanny - snail gobbler par excellence - and Donald gulped down. It is quite amazing: you can see the lump of the snail go down on the inside of their slender necks!
That's Clarence doing an arabesque in the photo.

Monday, 26th Sarah's birthday

On Saturday, when I was sorting out the margins of the duck pond, getting filthy and finding oodles of worms in the process, I thought I'd call the ducks to see if they'd "help" me. And they came! I was surprised and delighted. They didn't go into the water, though, just stood and stared at it. The same thing happened yesterday and today. They find their way to the duck pond but daren't go in.

I suppose they are like children, they like the familiar. Anything new or out of the ordinary seems to frighten them.

Wednesday, 28th

The ducks were behaving very strangely today. We had left the gate open when we went out to help at the luncheon club, so they could go to the frog pond as usual. When we came back they were still - or again - at home base, but not in the water. They were all lined up under the apple tree and against the greenhouse, and didn't come out to the frog pond until I stood there for some time to reassure them.

At about 6 tonight they went back to home base, but not into the water. I went to refresh their bedding in the hut around half past 6, and as you can see from the 2 photos below (I had to make them quite a bit brighter as it was getting dark already) they were still standing there looking undecided:

What on earth could have put them off going into the water?? A shark or pike, I'll bet. No, I'm being silly. But something must have happened to upset them.

Friday, 30th

No sign of their indecision yesterday morning, straight into the water from the hut. But before I let them out I saw two very big male pheasants going all around the garage and in front of the house. Now, if they had flown over the apple tree pond from the garage yesterday while we were out, THAT would have scared them alright!

I saw, for the first time, two drakes having a fight with beaks locked when I returned from shopping this morning. Didn't quite see which ones, but if they start doing each other some damage I shall have to give sorting out the drakes some urgent attention.