Brown pelican and Smudge and Peanut

Not much to report on today.  The juvenile brown pelican came down in the middle of a flock of coots and ate something.  I suspect it was a fish because it went down really fast.  The baby coot in that area was seen afterward, doing fine.  He's one of the few baby coots that have actually made it to almost 3 months old.

Brown pelicans are almost unheard of at Lake Murray, but, this year, many juvenile brown pelicans have been seen inland in their search for food.  No sign of the adult that accompanied him and his sibling there.  (His sibling died soon after arriving).

I also saw what I think was Smudge and her sister Peanut, together.  A male, either their dad or that big male in the area, was kill-deeting to them from across the little cove.

Peanut

Smudge

Smudge

Loose ducklings!

Like last year, there are a bunch of loose ducklings peeping around, losing their moms and moms who can't seem to keep them in control. I think it's because all the inexperienced moms are hatching their first ever brood right now. I hope they get things right for the duckling's sake. I almost saw a fish get one of them.



I saw Peaches' ducklings early in the morning, but not later. It is a warm day, they could be spending time in the shade. Several new drakes were seen around the boat dock and that may also be why. I'm glad they weren't there because there was a mom and child feeding the ducks and the child was chasing them all over! He could have hurt the little ducklings. Anyway, here are some pictures:

The pale duckling

Pepper

Nap time!

Caramel was with her ducklings, too. They're a little younger than Peaches':





Pollux, the killdeer chick made his fuzzy debut yesterday. He still has a lot of down on him, especially around the head and chest area. I also got photos of Castor and Squiggy. I thought I got a photo of Spike, too, but after looking at the photos, I didn't see any of him. He likes to fly all over the place and is definitely the leader of all the chicks. When he's gone, Squiggy takes over.

Pollux

Squiggy

Castor (reminds me a lot of Tiny)

Big sister Shy was looking after all of them.