There is a duck nesting beneath the bush by my front door. Why has it chosen this place? There's no water nearby and not a lot of green space, either, just a thin strip of garden and then the parking lot. Perhaps the other ducks already took all the nicer places.
She is not a very attentive mother. In fact for a bit I thought she had abandoned the nest, because I never saw her anymore and it was covered over with leaves; but that must have been camouflage, because she's back, and there are more eggs than ever. Some are speckled and some not.
I could've made a duck egg omelet by now if I wanted, although of course I don't, because then there wouldn't be ducklings. Ducklings! My own personal hoard of ducklings.
I foresee a Make Way for Ducklings reprise in my future.
She flies away whenever I try to go inside - as long as I'm just standing on the stoop she doesn't mind, but when I get out my key and unlock the door, that's A Bridge Too Far and away she goes.
It's fortunate she's a duck. I'm pretty sure a goose would go for my ankles in a similar situation. A pair of geese have nested in front of a supermarket near my house; one of them sits on the eggs while the other stands vigilant in front of the automatic doors, looking as if it would happily peck to death anyone who tries to go inside.
She is not a very attentive mother. In fact for a bit I thought she had abandoned the nest, because I never saw her anymore and it was covered over with leaves; but that must have been camouflage, because she's back, and there are more eggs than ever. Some are speckled and some not.
I could've made a duck egg omelet by now if I wanted, although of course I don't, because then there wouldn't be ducklings. Ducklings! My own personal hoard of ducklings.
I foresee a Make Way for Ducklings reprise in my future.
She flies away whenever I try to go inside - as long as I'm just standing on the stoop she doesn't mind, but when I get out my key and unlock the door, that's A Bridge Too Far and away she goes.
It's fortunate she's a duck. I'm pretty sure a goose would go for my ankles in a similar situation. A pair of geese have nested in front of a supermarket near my house; one of them sits on the eggs while the other stands vigilant in front of the automatic doors, looking as if it would happily peck to death anyone who tries to go inside.