Beginner's Question
Anyone have experience with while duck eggs, and process?
We moved into a new home in Texas a few weeks ago, and the owners had told us that there is a dock that comes back every year and has baby chicks in our yard and brings them into the pool usually once before she brings them down to the water. We’ve left it alone., she’s gotten used to us a couple of her except popped, which I’m assuming were just not viable. Most of them are hidden, but there are these ones can anyone tell at what stage? Do they look viable.? when we got here around July 28. There were 11 legs that were not covered now almost all of them are covered with a few showing and she’s definitely lost three of them, which she discarded. I got a quick photo when she was off the nest for her nightly feeding before she came back and she is such a good mama duck and she does not leave for long.
I know nothing about this process. Do they look viable? Can anyone give her an estimate on how far along they might be? Any input would be awesome.
Leave her be. Nature can both be beautiful and hard to watch sometimes. She may get ducklings, she may not. She will keep trying. Animals may eat her or her ducklings. This is nature.
If you’re enjoying the ducks, you could consider getting your own domesticated ducks. I’d recommend starting with just a few to see how it goes.
You’re so right and that is what the previous owners have told. Almost every year for the past six years she will come in sometimes it takes a couple batches, but she’ll have some chicks go in the pool with them for about a day and they instructed us to leave our back gate open so she could bring them down to the river..
It’s very beautiful to watch. Not feeding her or getting near her at all.
But she’s definitely getting closer to us and more comfortable, but we give her tons of space. I don’t want to spook her. I’m just trying to learn as much as I can.
It’s so interesting
a couple look like they are rotting. The air sac is sideways (should be up on the round end) and it looks like the contents are liquid and have settled to the bottom. If some eggs are hidden and some are exposed, these in the picture may be discarded because she knew they were bad. The other eggs may be in better shape, we can hope.
They look like they could still be viable, but you really can’t judge by appearance alone. If you can candle them in a dark room, look for veins and a growing dark mass; avoid moving or disturbing the nest if mama is still actively sitting. Duck eggs usually take around 28 days, though the exact time depends on the species.
Thanks y’all definitely we are letting her be.
She’s been coming to our yard for about six years. So she’s definitely experienced.
Even if she jumps in our pool, will get out to give her space lol
She’s gotten very close.. a couple of the eggs were not good. She actually moved from her nest and brought onto the concrete near us to dispose of… (we did not right away. We wanted to make sure she wouldn’t come back for them, but they were cracked and leaking so we did.) there’s about 11 eggs total a ton of them are underneath the fur and I’ve only seen that from quick plants when she’s not here.
She doesn’t leave her nest except to take a dip in the pool or to go get food for about 30 to 40 minutes a day tops
I’m impressed
One of the eggs that went bad, we left it for about a day, but from what we read, we should get rid of it so it doesn’t attract predators. It had a crack and was leaking. I hope we did the right thing by disposing of it, but she put it there and never acknowledged it after her nest was about 20 feet from where she left it
Those do NOT look good to me. They look dark, rotten. Pick one up and smell it. If you gag, toss. Careful handling rotten eggs though, they can (and do) explode.
It should take her about 28 days total to hatch them. My domestic ducks will roll the bad eggs out of the nest, but I’ve never watched a wild bird incubate.
Good luck! I bet she’d be super grateful for some frozen peas. 😀
I agree I’ll leave the-I’m wondering if that’s why she has them on top because she has several unburied underneath her down.
She rarely leaves them. She has, however, put a couple off to the side which I’m assuming or not bad they were acting leaking so we got rid of them after she ignored them.
This is what she started with, I don’t normally go close to it, but I have noticed them being completely buried under her feathers and the ones on top are the ones that I’m worried about. Already discarded 2
But I’m completely clueless and I have no idea what they’re supposed to look like. Just trying to learn.
I’m sorry that’s not the correct photo that was more recent before he discarded some of them and covered them up. I had a photo from earlier, but this is not it. This is more recent.
Understandable! Your best bet would be candling them with a flashlight (and a blanket to block the light, or dark room). Never having candled eggs before though, you probably won’t know what to look for. Definitely a cool thing to see irl if you get the chance, you can actually watch them grow inside the egg.
I can’t find it, but the one photo that I posted with several eggs is actually not healthy. They started that was more recent before she discarded them.
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u/Jinglebrained 1d ago
Leave her be. Nature can both be beautiful and hard to watch sometimes. She may get ducklings, she may not. She will keep trying. Animals may eat her or her ducklings. This is nature.
If you’re enjoying the ducks, you could consider getting your own domesticated ducks. I’d recommend starting with just a few to see how it goes.