The Ex-Drake

The ducks get locked into their run of an evening. They are a bit haphazard about where they lay eggs - they usually lay in the morning - so we keep them locked up until mid-morning to stand a chance of knowing where they have laid eggs. 

But the drake didn't appear with them one evening . he had been limping a bit for  a couple of days.

And a couple of days later we eventually found him .

 

 

And we think its was probably a hungry otter - the otter has got into the chest and eaten the contents ( heart and lungs)

 

And it was our only drake. So we are on the lookout for a replacement. If we wnat to try and hatch some ducklings we will need a drake to do the business. 

The otters are back

Back in 2013 we had some vanishing ducks .
the puzzle started here , then we found a suspect and then a witness.







We've fenced the ducks in , in their new pond  and blocked the (easy) access  along the burn . But they do go walkabout  - they were photographed  on the road , and in the tourist season we do get people stopping , coming and telling us that the ducks are on the road.





So we came to lock the ducks up , and one was missing . A brief hunt found her in the undergrowth and limping ( and easy to catch - which is usually  bad sign)

And she was injured -

and the injury to beak meant that she wouldn' t be able to forage properly. So there was only one solution , and we are one duck fewer

At mating season otters tend to roam, so it probayl was a combination of the duck beign out on the road, near a burn , and an otter exploring.  If we loose any more we will have to think about breeding replacements this year ( but we werent intending to )