It was very early the other morning when two ducks flew right over us and landed in the water about 40 yards away. Still too dark to see what kind of duck. I had taken a friend with me to a spot that I frequent quite a bit in early Spring. It’s a small finger of water, maybe 80 yards long and only 30 yards wide. But in the Spring, it’s a magical place. Something is always happening there, and it was no different today.
It turned out the ducks were a male and female Wood duck. They were in a feeding mood, and they came quite close to us, but we were well hidden. But once they were done feeding, the mood took a more romantic turn, and that’s when the problems started.
The female was ready and raring to go, but it seemed like the male didn’t have a clue what she wanted. When wood ducks are ready to mate, the female signals that she is ready by flattening herself out on the water. I’m guessing that this makes the whole process go a bit smoother.
He doesn’t have a clue….
I don’t know if this was his first time, but he sure wasn’t making much of an impression on the young lady! She even started blowing bubbles at him to maybe give him a clue!
Hey, big boy! Over here!!!
Finally, ten minutes later, he grasped the meaning of her gestures and he took care of business!
But I don’t think he made much of impression on her. They flew up into a dead tree and it looks like she was giving him the cold shoulder. Better luck next time buddy! Actually, after this encounter, they spent an hour searching the nearby trees for a suitable nest tree, and that was fascinating to watch.
Was it something I said???
Most times the stories behind the pictures are more entertaining than the images themselves. I hope you enjoyed both!