Almost four years ago I wrote about the unusual inhabitant of the nearby pond: a domestic white duck.
Since then I kept watching him (for whatever reason I decided it was a drake) almost daily, feeling happy when I saw him in the company of other birds or sad when he was alone. Unlike other birds, this domestic duck seemed to be more “stationary”: most of the days he would be somewhere around the pond. Some days he wouldn’t be there, and I’d be worried that something had happened to him. But the next day he would be back, and the order of things would be restored.
One day, while walking in the neighborhood about a mile from our place, we came across another group of ducks with one white domestic duck. Was it our duck that got that far away from his regular spot? Could it be another white duck that also joined a wild life (after escaping from the same farm from the legend we came up with for the previous one)? We weren’t sure. I took a picture of that other group. As we came back that evening, our duck was back where it usually was, in the company of wild mallards, very similar to the one that we saw thirty minutes earlier. I took another picture and spent some time comparing the two birds. “Our” seemed bigger but then the distances from which I took those pictures were also different, so I couldn’t be really sure one way or the other.
In the following seven months we kept meeting a white duck here and there on our evening walks. We even found a “feeding spot” where two women from the apartment complex said they were feeding that white duck almost every evening. And we knew that there was a woman who fed all the birds next to our pond in the morning. And since after that one time it was back to seeing the white duck just once a day, I finally decided that probably it was the same one bird just migrating between several places that provided morning or evening meals.
A couple of weeks ago, driving by, we suddenly saw TWO white ducks in the same group of birds. I thought my eyes were playing a trick since there are other while birds around here – egrets or seagulls – whom from the distance I confuse with our duck from time to time. So we had to stop, I got out from the car, disappoint all the birds that rushed towards me expecting treats – but now I have a proof that at least two domestic white ducks live around here among wild birds. So, the title of this sequel post should have rather been: The Two Beautiful Duck(ling)s but that would have given the plot away.
Image: my own
Undina's Looking Glass 
What a lovely story. They do look cute
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Thank you, Matty.
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Lovely post and surprising to read 🦆🦆 the outcome!
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Thank you, Esperessence.
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Love this story!!!
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Thanks, Brigitte. It felt like we all might use some light entertaining these days.
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Such an uplifting story. Love. 💚
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Back at you! <3
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Well, I never. I didn’t know there was such a thing as inter-species mingling! Or that birds were so opportunistic and canny as to seek out the best spot to get a free meal. ;)
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Right?! You should have seen that crowd! Twice as many birds were left out of the picture because I tried to show “my” ducks. Now I feel compelled to go and feed them :)
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Wow! That is some picture with all the different fowl species! I’m glad you “found” your white duck. It’s probably the angle of the shot but one of them looks like a giant!
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Nope, it’s not an optical illusion: “our” duck is actually that big. Probably, it’s the result of stress-free life and regular meal delivery schedule.
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This was so soothing to read, thank you. Your duck is like something from a picture book.
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Thank you for reading, Tara.
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Sweet. I am attached to some black squirrels that hang around a tree in my backyard. I can see them from the window where I work. They are different then the city squirrels I am used to. Smaller and more playful. I watched them for quite awhile thinking they were babies because of their size and playfulness, but finally I noticed 2 seasons went by and they are still tiny. It made me love them more.
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Next you’ll start bringing them treats ;)
We have a lot of birds around where I live, so they became a part of our day-to-day life: we notice how many of them are here every day, how big or small they are, how they interact. It brings small joys.
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Peanuts are on my shopping list!
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That’s so sweet, they can now keep each other’s company! And who knows, if it’s male and female maybe they’ll bond soon? Spring is coming after all, right?
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I’m not sure if they decide to stick together: since then I saw them in different companies, and “our” duck is around almost every day, whereas the second one comes and goes. But we’ll see. I report back if a flock of tiny white ducklings are spotted.
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Nature really gives us some sweet, relaxing moments! Thanks for sharing this story.
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Thank you for reading, Ingeborg.
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