It's hard to believe that just a few weeks ago, these now nearly grown ducklings were just learning how to find their way around.
We've learned that the most dangerous predators of these youngsters are the adults themselves who look for opportunities to catch the little guys wandering too far away from their mothers. Unfortunately, drowning is a common occurrence. It isn't unusual to see the older males and females viciously attacking the babies in an effort to bring down the number of fowl who are dependent upon the natural food sources available within the pond's ecosystem. Nature can be cruel.
There are signs posted at the pond that explicitly warn against feeding the ducks and threaten lawbreakers with a heavy fine. I didn't understand until recently why feeding these birds is strictly prohibited. Why would a seemingly harmless activity be illegal? Because while ducks love bread, it lacks the nutrients and roughage of their natural diet; they can even choke on bread. It's like giving a kid candy and soda for breakfast and lunch every day. Feeding waterfowl also tends to cause the birds to concentrate in numbers higher than can be supported by the natural food supplies. Some birds will remain in an area long after feeding stops in the winter, become too weak to fly, and may eventually die of starvation.
It's hard to believe that one duck in a pond can create as much fecal coliform bacteria as a restroom used by five people. Sooooo, we never feed the ducks at the pond. It's hard to resist the temptation because they seem so, well, helpless when they're this age.
It is somewhat comforting to know that we are actually contributing to their overall health and longevity by letting nature provide for them...or not. Hard to persuade my young children, however, when they see all the other parents handing their kids bags full of stale bread, crackers and chips.
How's that for a visual validation of their opinion that they just have the very bad luck of being stuck with a really rotten mommy.
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