Back to Arnot Hill Park and the duck pond again, with two interesting ducks.
One is the Mandarin drake. He wasn’t about last visit, and on the visit before that it was so dull I couldn’t get a good shot.
We have a population of around 2,300 breeding pairs in the UK, with more in Dublin and mainland Europe. In winter there can be as many as 7,000 individuals, including migrants from Europe. All were introduced, either deliberately or from accidental escapes. In its normal range habitat destruction has reduced the population to around a 1,000 in China, and about the same in Russia. The only stable population is Japan, with 5,000 pairs. It is listed as “declining” worldwide, but is still a species of Least Concern.
The one I saw today, though small, is quite capable of holding his own against Coots and Mallards, two species that are currently getting a bit lively as the breeding season approaches.
The other duck caught my eye amongst the various Mallard hybrids is a pleasantly coloured individual with a longish tail that resembles a Pintail. The shape of the neck ring, from certain angles, also resembles a Pintail.
I looked up hybrid ducks and found several records that look like this, plus an analysis of how they happen. Mallards have a bit of a reputation for overly enthusiastic mating and this is one of the results.
The photograph of the duck lacking head was a mistake, but is the only one showing the green speculum which is a feature of this cross-breed.
It’s amazing what you can learn from looking at a duck pond.
The video comes up blacked out for me again. Must be a digital viewing rights issue. That Mandarin drake is beautiful. And yes, those Mallards do get around. Enthusiastic little chaps. 🙂
Sorry about that. I’ll see if there are any buttons to press which might fix it.
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And what an amazing duck pond! I love the term “overenthusiastic mating.” Another way of putting it might be opportunistic mating 😉
Let’s just say that at certain times of year it would be a bad idea to bend down next to a mallard.
🙂
Thanks for the hybrid, I was unaware. Although you’re correct, Mallards have a way of doing that sort of thing, but the ones we see are usually with domesticated ducks, which is not much of a stretch of the imagination. The video is lovely.
Thank you. I too was unaware of the mallard/pintail, as you say, it’s mostly mallard/domestic that we see too.
Thank you for sharing this. The Mandarin duck is stunning. And I didn’t know that mallards mated with other species. Now I know!
Yes, it’s fascinating what you can learn from a duck pond. 🙂
Good video. We have some very ‘crossed’ mallards here.
Yes, they aren’t fussy…
I like the video. The mandarin is certainly well able to hold his own!
Yes, I took another video later and he had a go at a couple of coots!
Bonkers bird! 😀 😀
🙂
Excellent. Terrific video. I remember when a DA was something on one’s head
I’m old enough to understand you, but young enough never to have had one. 🙂
Hadn’t thought about it for years.
🙂