Mallard Ducks

susanm9006

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For nearly as long as I have lived here, sixteen years, every spring I have a pair of ducks that come to rest in my yard for a portion of every day. Until recently I thought it was the same pair but I have been reading that wild ducks only live four or five years on average. Now I am wondering if I have been a resting spot for multiple pairs of ducks, maybe a different one every day, that stop here on their migration to wherever their summer home is. These ducks are very chill and comfortable in my presence but perhaps word has passed from generation to generation that my yard is a safe space.

What do you think?
 

Willowy

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My cousins had a pair of domestic ducks that lived to be 15 and 17. But, yeah, it would be extraordinarily lucky for wild ducks to live that long. I'd say it's likely that those are descendents of the original ducks.

I do think birds pass down general knowledge to their descendents in some way. When we first moved here, the porch had a light that had a little ledge, just perfect for barn swallows. So a pair built a nest, raised their babies, etc. But it wasn't a great experience for us---the adult birds would attack us when we used that door, and the nest got bird mites that crawled all over, and of course all the poop. We bought pet bird mite spray and that helped a little, but eww. So when they grew up and left, my dad took that light down and put up a smooth one they couldn't build on. And every year, STILL, 27 years later, barn swallows come and check out my parents' porch light to see if they can build on it.
 

FeebysOwner

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I am not sure it is the same thing entirely - but I have had what likely is generations of squirrels and various birds come into my yard because I feed them and it is mostly safe in my backyard. So, I think there is some truth about 'word being passed' through the generations. I also think there is something to be said somehow similarly for migratory birds that pass through my yard, although I am not completely clear on the communication process for that one!!!
 
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susanm9006

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That is fascinating Maurey Maurey ! They sure do seem like they know me or my yard.

More proof this afternoon that I just might be on the Mallard couple migration route. I was returning home and was about a block away when I saw another pair resting in a front yard. Definitely not the ones visiting me, since they were sleeping in my yard when I returned home.
 

BellaGooch

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I don’t know anything about ducks, but that’s really sweet. I wouldn’t be surprised if the ducks are passing on through generations the information that your yard is nice. ❤
 

Maurey

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That is fascinating Maurey Maurey ! They sure do seem like they know me or my yard.

More proof this afternoon that I just might be on the Mallard couple migration route. I was returning home and was about a block away when I saw another pair resting in a front yard. Definitely not the ones visiting me, since they were sleeping in my yard when I returned home.
by the way — if you have any poultry, I’d suggest being careful, especially if they aren’t vaccinated against bird flu. Mallards are one of the more common type of bird to spread it.
 

fionasmom

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Definitely corvids. I have been feeding crows for years in my back property and they absolutely know me and everything about my whereabouts and have brought subsequent generations here. I don't think that we know much about animal communication at all.
geese.jpg
These geese appear at the Norton Simon museum in Pasadena each year and go to the Monet garden. However, they figured out that there is a front door and insisted that it be opened for them, so you see them walking through the museum proper with their family.
 
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