Wood duck hatch! Update #5

Canso

Canso

CGN Regular
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Location
Lower Mainland/ Vancouver
Had an interesting day last wednesday. Checked our boxes and 4 have hatched out. One had what looked to be a dead duckling in it but when I went to clean out the box it lifted it's head and looked at me! It had a gimpy foot, I guess it couldn't climb out.....
We had the boat that day and went up to where we had seen woods with ducklings and sure enough there were some under some low branches. I let the duckling go and it raced off under the branches and away they all went. It could swim ok so at least the duck has a chance to survive now!
We also had a camera placed low to the water and got a great shot of a hen with her ducklings! We also got our only Kingfisher picture this year and it's a beauty! Only a few more checks to go before we wrap it up in mid-June. Taking some DU interns out this weekend to see our work and get them some field hours too.


















 
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Canso said:
Some photo bucket issues. Come back later if the pictures aren’t up.

Rob, I’m hoping the high Fraser doesn’t wipe out a lot of nests and hatched birds.
Click to expand...

Yup, pb is back and running for you.The Fraser is going to do what she wants and when she wants.
Just hope she shows the wildlife some mercy along with those living close to her banks.
Thanks for the updates.
Digging the Drake telling you to keep back and that Kingfisher is another cool shot.
Would be cool to see the fish profile.
Best Regards.
Rob
 
Three for four on my swallow boxes. The lake was coming up towards a 15 year high. Started getting nervous but Babine has slowed down this last week and should be OK. Will move the two lower boxes this fall. Great photos Canso.
 
Great stuff. So how far off the water do you put your boxes? Around my place it seems like they prefer to be a good 15+ yards into the bush.
 
Thanks for posting the pics! For a couple or three years a merganser family lived near our cabin at Crooked Lake in the Qu'Appelle Valley. The mother would march the family down to the lake, go for a swim, then march them all back into the brush at the shore. They stayed together long enough that it was hard to tell the young from the adults. They made the weirdest sounds.
 
I don’t know what the Pit Poulder area is like for high water, but if it is anything like the Nicomen Slough things are going to get interesting.
Even Campbell Valley Fraser River was high.
Hope all the boxes are safe and the birds adapt to the high water.
Rob
 
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