Busy day in George's territory

Martha, Killer and Digger

George had a lot of visitors in his territory at Lake Murray, unfortunately, someone came by as I was taking pictures, so I couldn't make out who everyone was. But, there were at least 7 killdeer there plus Bob1, the sandpiper.

George (in the background), rushes towards 2 other killdeer

Killer, George's son

Killer and Digger were there. Digger looked a little roughed up, but she might have been cold and had her feathers puffed out for warmth.

Digger

I saw the fat-banded male killdeer, one of the ballfield killdeer. I think the female next to him was Martha, but could possibly be Shy or Firecraker. I think Tiny and his mate were there, too.



The Three Musketeer ducks: Ducky was seen mating with the female of the group, though her brother wanted to participate. However, Ducky (and his sister) wouldn't let him. Ducky still hasn't gotten his green head and he still has the plumage of a young duck. He could have a little hybrid blood in him, or it might be due to his late hatching and he may get his full colors in the fall.



Tom was there and he was really hungry. He wouldn't stop following me around. There are new signs at the lake telling people not to feed the birds. They claim it's harassment of the animals and cite a fish and game hunting code about feeding animals. However, that code was meant to say that hunters may not feed animals for the purpose of attracting them to a spot where they can be hunted (or harassed), not to feeding birds in city parks or backyards.



Here's a pretty wood duck:




Oreo and Big Daddy 2:



Bigboi:





And Cinnamon:



Here she is with three of her suitors, two of which are "chocolate" ducks. The fourth suitor was not in the viewfinder of the camera. Cinnamon still calls for males to join her. I think she likes that crested Rouen, but he gave up on her a while back. I think the one nearest to her is Chocolate 1:




Not seen in a while: Curly. But, he disappears now and then.

Lake Murray to discourage duck feeding

I haven't seen any definite information about it, but rumor is going around that Lake Murray in San Diego is going to start discouraging people from feeding ducks or other wildlife in the future. The claim is that the feeding is attracting rats, mice and seagulls.

Here is my opinion and observations on this issue:

I think they should continue with the morning feedings with Bill and the pre-dawn feeders at each end of the lake. If anyone asks why they are allowed to feed, it can be explained that they are the only ones allowed to do so, or they are the "official" feeders.

The only issue I have with some of the feeding is that the ducks will sometimes go across the parking lot to get more food in the morning. This can cause problems with drivers, especially on weekends. However, it's usually only a very short period in the morning where this is a problem and it quickly dissipates as soon as the feeder leaves the area.

Also, a minor problem is that feeding ducks corn does attract undesirable birds such as crows and grackles. However, the arrival of a recently fledged Cooper's hawk in the morning has put a damper on these pests. The only problem is that the hawk also likes other, more friendly, birds, too and you can't tell him which birds he can hunt and which ones he can't.

In the morning, I don't see any problems with the regular feeders that are there now who feed the birds birdseed and duck food or vegetables. However, I do notice that bread feeding at other times of the day, by the general public, has gotten out of control. I don't seem to remember so many people feeding the birds bread as there are now in all the years I've been going to this lake. Later in the day, I do notice that there are more seagulls and grackles than in the morning, when I see very few.

I do the bird counts at this lake once a month at the same time of day the feedings go on and see no increase in any one particular species. In fact, ducks have gone down in number, probably due to migration and construction. Coots have dramatically gone up for the same reason, but they are the only true increase I've seen recently of regular year-round species. I have also seen very few rats or mice at the lake.

There are several ducks that will probably starve or struggle if they don't get regular food. Ducks like Curly, the duck with half his upper bill deformed can't feed all day and he is already underweight. Bill said he was starving when he found him and it might be his end if he can't be fed. Also, Tom the Muscovy would have a hard time with getting enough food as he is sight impaired. The geese, also, may go hungry.

Feeding the ducks also helps monitor the progress of ducklings and makes it easier to see ducks who have been injured by fishing line or hooks. It is our responsibility to help birds harmed by human activities. If we didn't feed them, at least once a day, we would not see how many need help.

I usually don't think that people should feed wildlife as it can cause them to be dependent and attract nuisance animals or encourage aggression. But, I don't see a problem with the regular morning feeders. I do think that feeding bread should be discouraged and perhaps that's a place to start. I'm sure there will be people who will still feed the ducks bread or try to sneak-feed them, but if they want to curtail the feeding, they should start there and not with the regular feeders.

Another thing they can do is install pellet stations for people to buy healthy food for waterfowl that pest birds don't like. It might, at least, curtail the bread and "trash food" feeding that is, most likely, the problem.

That's my opinion on the issue.

Tiny becomes a flirt

2 juveniles, I think it's Tiny and Digger

Unfortunately, I didn't bring my camera yesterday, but Tiny was flirting, very heavily, with the two female chicks from across the lake. Shy was not that interested and Digger didn't seem overly excited, either.

Digger

Martha

Today, when I brought my camera, it was too dark to get decent photos. I saw George and the entire family and Digger in Alvarado Bay at Lake Murray. Shy was across the lake and her dad was on the shore of Padre Bay giving alarm calls to his girl. I didn't get a photo of him as he flew away. Soon after he flew away, his little daughter came over calling for him, but flew back to her spot. The killdeer seem really nervous lately, possibly due to it being busy and the males being anxious about their prospective mates.

Also seen:

Here's George standing with a spotted sandpiper wandering behind him. George acted like he was going to attack the smaller bird, at first, but backed off.

George and a sandpiper

Duckies!

Female Chocolate (Chocolate 2) was seen today. Here she is standing straight up with her runner self. I think she has the same father as Chocolate 1, but different mother.



Here's a cute little white duck, probably a small Pekin or a call duck. It's smaller than the coots.




A gentleman named Bill comes to feed the birds at the lake and leaves his bag on the ground, sometimes. Here are some ducks eating right out of his bags.

That's Tom, the Muscovy duck in the photo. He's a sweetie. Some kids came along later and threw bread at him, but it didn't hurt. He was wagging his tail like crazy in a happy way, but I think the kids were scared of him or something. I told them about how bad bread is for ducks, but that doesn't stop anyone from feeding it to the ducks. I tried to tell them that Tom liked them because he was wagging his tail. The kids did leave him alone, though, after a few minutes. I love that old duck, would be sad if anyone hurt him. I wish I could take him home.


Bill feeds them cracked corn and wild bird feed, mostly.

Bread isn't good for ducks. There's one young duck that eats too much of it and then he can't walk or swim well afterward. He ate too much today when a family visited the lake and almost couldn't move at all and looked sick afterward. He gets better after a few days and it's better than the last time he over-ate, but it's still a problem. I am considering taking him to a vet or talking to a wildlife rehabber if this continues.