Stroup: Mother Nature springs into action (Part 1) – Cross Timbers Gazette | Southern Denton County | Flower Mound

Every spring we get a visit from a lovely mallard duck that insists on building a nest in one of our flower gardens. We assume it’s the same duck that waddled into our garden from our pond the previous spring. Since they all look pretty much the same, it could be an offspring from the previous year’s breeding season… hard to say, really not sure. We’ve hosted up to 10 chicks from an original 12 eggs. Anyway, the hen always comes back to the same spot where she builds a new nest. This season it was only three eggs. But as always, as if by magic, one morning when we go outside there are little chicks living in the pond. The nest is in the flowers, which are in a bed half a foot above the water’s surface. Once the eggs hatch, the mother hops in and the chicks follow. She swims back and forth while the little fluff balls do their best to keep up. She teaches them to swim so it would appear that way to a casual human observer. And she does so with endless patience and enthusiasm. Then she presents “the real challenge!” She jumps out of the water. Desperately, the chicks crawl around beneath her, trying to climb the sloping walls, but they get nowhere. She beckons them to follow her with a soft quack. They fail even after numerous attempts. Mom patiently continues to try and educate her unsuspecting little ones. Finally, after a deep breath, one of the little darlings takes a leap of faith. With a thud, it lands awkwardly next to her on the pool deck. While speaking in duck language, she gets a little lucky and lures the chick away from the others. It follows her. She turns around to encourage the other two to join them. At this point, duckling #1 scurries behind her and flops back into the water. (Kids will be kids!) After countless attempts, all 3 ducklings are finally on dry land next to her… Phew! With all their ducks lined up, the little family makes its way to the pond.

As it happened, our three grandchildren came to visit the next day and were hanging out on the back porch. You could hear their excited and delighted squeaking…I knew why, it had to be the ducks. Without even stepping outside, I knew what was going on. Mama Mallard and the triplets had no doubt made their way back to the pool. (I guess they needed more swimming lessons! Just imagine.) Of course, there was little to stop the grandchildren from running down to the pool to catch a duckling or two. Much to their chagrin, they were locked on the porch and had to watch from far too far away as the ducks continued to be fed.

Now for some very sad news: When Mama Mallard showed up at the pool the next day, there were only two babies. A giant snapping turtle from the pond had grabbed one of the chicks by the feet, pulled it down, and eaten it. (We know this because we’ve seen it so many times.) And the day after that, there was one. And the day after that, there were none. But Mother Nature is an incredible force. It only took two days for the unfortunate duckling to return to her nest and lay three more eggs. And when I checked the next day, there were three more! But before the week was out, two of the six had been stolen! One was near the nest and a big mess… completely broken open and without any insides. Another egg was incredibly far from its home, way up in our yard. I spotted it and waited until Mama was no longer paying attention. It took a long time to put it back before I was sure the mom had climbed out of the nest. This dutiful duck deserves an award for being a great mother! She is a single mother who does it all. She rarely leaves the nest. And when she does, it is only for a very short time.

At the time of writing this article, there are still 7 intact and unhatched eggs in her nest.
I’ll wait until next month and tell you if it’s more or less.
And back then, there was also a turtle saga that I want to share with you. If only it had stayed far away, I wouldn’t have minded!