New Bossy Ducklings

Well, I think I know why Spoonface has been hanging around this one area.  His mom had more ducklings.

Here is Bossy (Spoonface) with the ducklings, his mom and I think that might be his sister on the bottom:

I saw Butterscotch with her four out of six larger ducklings last Thursday in the same area, but did not see her today.

Neo was seen hanging out with the bigger male ducks, but still peeps like a duckling when his mom is around:

This molting wood duck reminds me of Doodle, I think it's Doodle's Bully:

This is unusual, a pied-billed grebe on land.  Usually that means it's sick or injured.  He seemed fine, though.

And, one of the young killdeers.  This one is tentatively named Killer III:

Fish Food Mama was seen with all five of her ducklings, but I couldn't get a photo of them.  And, the two brown pelicans are still hanging around, but I still haven't seen them feeding on anything.

Still no sign of Cinnamon's Twin, but I seem to remember a lake staff member saying she brought a duck to Project Wildlife because she was covered with blood.  I will have to ask about that as I think it might have been Cinnamon's Twin.  If it is, it is unlikely she will be re-released back at the lake because she's a non-flying hybrid.

Little duckies everywhere!

Scaups

A whole bunch of small diving ducks have invaded Lake Murray. Over a hundred ruddy ducks are there now and they have been joined by a lot of lesser scaup and redheads.

The killdeer are beginning to return to the ballfield. I think I saw Shy and her boyfriend hanging out with her parents in the ballfields. Shy's dad is not thrilled with her new mate, but they're getting along OK.

The M6 parents and Shy

In the other field, I can't identify all the killdeer, but I think Secret, Surprise and the Tiny-look-a-like were there plus a couple others.

The "Tiny look-a-like" and an unknown killdeer

I still haven't seen George, Martha, Tiny and Firecracker in a while and I hope that the vultures weren't looking for them on Sunday.

Here is Killer and Digger, hanging out.

Notice how their bodies and feathers look fully filled out like full-grown killdeer now.

Killer spotted a red-tail from miles away, but was not overly concerned about it.



Here's a photo of the red-tailed hawk:



Duck and goose news:

I don't think I saw Ducky, but Caramel and Butterscotch, two of the "fish food ducklings" almost got run over by a car today. Their mom, also, stepped right in front of a truck as it passed by, too. All are OK, though, but that was scary. The fish-food ducklings are three of my favorite ducks at the lake and they just reached breeding age. I want to see if they're going to be good mamas like their mom. The drivers were being careful, but sometimes the ducks move unpredictably. Luckily, they don't hang out in the parking lot too much.

Good news on the missing gray goose: I found him and his friend all the way on the other side of the lake. I don't know why they went over there, perhaps they're going to have babies and wanted to have time to themselves. I can't tell if they're male and female or which is the gander and which is the geese, though. Unfortunately, this area has large predators such as coyotes and bobcats, so I fear for them a little bit. I hope they come back to the flock, soon.



Also seen:

I saw two kingfishers, here's a photo of one of them:



And, I thought I would add a cute photo of some pied-billed grebes.

Digger (or Shy) "flirts" with dad in the ballfield

Lake Murray Ballfield Killdeer

I saw a really small, cute female in one of the ballfields with the M6 (Beautiful) Dad. She was really close to a fence and when I went over to see her, she crouched down on the ground and tried to hide in the grass. She appears to be around 8 weeks old, but still a little undersized. The dad constantly called and chirped to her when she made her alarm calls and trills at me. I think it might have been one of the two female chicks from the M6 area, most likely Digger.

Digger (or Shy) at 8 weeks

Eventually, she calmed down and started over towards her dad. It appeared that she was flirting with him as her behavior was totally strange. She would crouch down and seem tease him. When he came up to her, she would get up and run away. I don't know if she was being a flirt or trying to entice her dad into a game of chase by flashing her red tail feathers at him. Her dad responded with a swelled up neck and puffed up chest feathers, but little else. He may have been puffed up to warn other males to stay away from his daughter.

Playing around with dad

It's possible that the lack of a mom around may have confused her a little when it comes to flirting with her dad. Normally, the mom would be nearby to nip that kind of behavior from the beginning. But, it wasn't serious and I don't think she knew what she was doing. When a starling broke them up, the young female went back to feeding and the dad was shadowing her, not acting like he was interested in her other than protecting her. I think they tend to be at least 4 months old before they breed, so she's got a while to go. And, it's likely that another male will claim her before then (especially if she's a flirt).

A starling breaks them up

I'm glad to see them because they're really ripping it up in their territory. Here's a photo of the road being torn apart only a few feet from where the chicks used to hide:

Construction just feet from where Digger (or Shy) used to hide

It's possible that the other female chick was somewhere around, but I didn't see her.

George and Martha's Family

When I was leaving, I didn't expect to find any killdeers in Alvarado Bay as the water level was really high and George doesn't like it that high. But, when I was walking through a grassy area, a large killdeer flew off. It called and even though I couldn't see it, it sounded like it landed passed the fenced area and called to a second killdeer nearby. I couldn't get a photo of the first killdeer, but I think it was Tiny as the second killdeer was Firecracker. Even when they were chicks, they were almost always together. Firecracker flew off and I thought I saw her going to a little bay on the north side, but when I got there, she was gone. I can't figure out where they go when they go to the north side.

Firecracker at 8 weeks

George and Martha haven't been seen for over a week and I'm beginning to suspect that they may have a new nest and possibly new chicks. George becomes very parental the last week before the eggs hatch and the first week the chicks are around. I saw Martha flirting with George about a month ago, so that would mean that the eggs, if there are any, have hatched. Unfortunately, I can't get to that area to check on them.

Also, the third chick, Killer, hasn't been seen for a while, but he was always scared of people and being out in the open. When he was a chick, from the third day, he always lagged behind to stay hidden longer. So, he may still be with mom and dad, which would indicate that there are probably no new chicks, yet.

Also Seen:

A spotted sandpiper. I didn't notice the piece of plastic when I took this photo or I would have picked it up:



A bunch of baby grebes and a parent:



Two ganders (the brown one can be bitey):



I think this might be an Anna's hummingbird because it has a red crown. This guy was demanding that I take his photo:

George is heard, but not seen. Also, ballfield killdeer update

Male and female at the ballfield. The male had his eye on me the whole time.

I didn't see George or Martha again, but I heard George make a call when some people walked over near a dock. When I looked there, I saw no signs of any killdeer at all. But, I know that George is still around and I often hear him but don't see him. It's possible that he doesn't like the new water level as it brings him too close to where people walk.

4th of July chicks should be flying now

All 4th of July chicks who have made it this far should be flying by now, but they won't be very good at it for another couple of weeks and will probably rely on running and hiding still. They will be about 1/2 the size of their parents, but fully feathered. Flying will give them a new advantage against predators even though they won't have the ability or stamina to fly very far or high. They should be full-sized by 8 weeks old, or in about another month.

In the M6 area, all is quiet. I don't even see people doing construction there. I'm sure Digger and Shy are just fine and practicing their flying. If the road opens, soon, I will go check on them.

Junior should be a dad now

Junior (aka Little Male), son of George (M2) should now have a family as it's been more than 28 days since he mated with the smooth-band female. I haven't found him or his family. I can't search everywhere, though, and wish him and his family good luck. Junior has always been more high strung than any other killdeer and never had a lot of tolerance for me, so it's good that he will be raising his chicks without having to worry. Perhaps I will see his next family and he will have become calmer.

Killdeer at the ballfield

I think I spotted Mary over in the ballpark again. There were 9 killdeer there, 8 were the ones from that area and the 9th was Mary, all by herself. The other killdeer seem to like her, but she won't be able to get a mate unless an unbonded male takes her in. One male seemed to be following her around a bit, but later on, she was still alone. Mary is also a very large female, it looks like. Also at the ballfield, it appears that there were some young killdeer, perhaps about six to eight weeks old.

Mary eating with the doves. She likes seeds more than other killdeer do.

Mary with another female

Also seen at the ballpark was Digger and Shy's mom. I think she might either have new eggs or is hiding chick #3 over in the "disputed area" nearby. Bo was also at the ballfield as well as the bow-tie male and possibly the old male killdeer, M4.

The killdeer at the ballpark like to keep me at a distance, so it's hard to get really nice photos. It's so funny. I walk into the ballfield and the killdeer all watch me, begin to due hiccups and move away, but they stay quiet. As I turn to go away, they all start doing peeps, or mild alarm calls. Very funny. No problem going towards them, but I guess they had to say something to me as I leave.

I found this one funny photo of this killdeer. She was grooming herself and then got her foot stuck over her wing, presumably as she was scratching her head. She did this a couple of times, but she's OK, she got the foot out.

Grooming mishap! She was alright and got her leg in the right place after the photo was taken

Also seen this day:

A juvenile green heron, possibly newly fledged. I've seen a parent there before, but never knew about the babies. He caught a fish while I was watching.


A snowy egret showing off his yellow feet


A juvenile pied-bill grebe. He was sleeping on the shore and I thought he was a sick duck, so I came closer to check him, but he went into the water and went to sleep there. I never thought these grebes ever got out of the water. He still has some stripes on his head.