Duck

Feed the Ducks

– Feed the Ducks –
Many of us have grabbed a loaf of bread and headed to a pond or lake with our families to “feed the ducks.” That was before we knew it wasn’t good for them.
When ducks see us arrive with our loaf of bread, they hurry to greet us as they wait for treats. But bread is not healthy. It fills them up and provides little to no nutritional value.
Did you know that feeding ducks a high-protein, high-carbohydrate diet, which includes food such as bread, can cause a deformity known as Angel Wing? Angel Wing occurs when the wing bones grow too fast, causing joints to swivel and making the duck unable to fly. Ducks with Angel Wing cannot fly to new food sources and may be ousted from their flock.
So, what do ducks eat?
In the wild, ducks forage for snails, worms, insects, frogs, salamanders, fish and fish eggs, nuts, fruits, berries, and plants.
When we know better, we do better.
Good snack foods for ducks include lettuce, cabbage, kale, pea shoots, cucumber, corn, peas, beans, broccoli, beets, squash, flowers, alfalfa, tomatoes, eggplant, peeled bananas, pineapple, and pomegranate seeds.
Remember: Don’t let ducks become dependent on you for food or allow them to fill up on snacks, no matter how healthy they may be. Nature provides a healthy diet with all the nutrients ducks need.
Reference: Blog Education National Geographic


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Ring-necked Duck

The Ring-necked Duck is a commonly seen medium-sized duck that winters in Florida. After breeding in the northern United States and Canada, it migrates to the southern US.
Look closely at the picture, and you will see the brown ring around the duck’s neck. Look for Ring-necked Ducks foraging near the surface of the water for hydrilla. This diving duck finds most of its food under the water. Seeds and plants make up most of their diet. Insects, clams, and snails are an occasional treat.
Photo Credit: Dan Kon
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Blue-winged Teal

Blue-winged Teals, Spatula discors, are dabbling ducks who migrate long distances to their winter homes. These small ducks breed in Canada and the United States before heading south to places as far away as South America. They are one of the earliest migrants to arrive in Florida.
Look for Blue-winged Teals in marshes and wetlands swimming in tranquil brackish water or freshwater. They can often be seen in groups with other dabbling ducks. Their diet includes aquatic insects, snails, crustaceans, and vegetation. However, in winter, they add more seeds such as water lilies and rice to their diets. Watch Blue-winged teals find food by dipping their bills into the water or immersing their heads in the water in a “bottoms-up” posture.
Photo Credit: David Gale and KonStudio
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Hooded Merganser

Hooded Mergansers, Lophodytes cucullatus, are easy to spot with their distinctive crests. Males sport a striking black and white crest while females look regal with their copper crests. Many of these common small ducks spend their winters in Florida. Hooded Mergansers generally arrive late in the fall and leave early in the spring for northern breeding territories.
Look for small groups of Hooded Mergansers in wetlands, marshes, swamps, flooded forests, and estuaries where they thrive in shallow freshwater or brackish bays. Watch them as they dive to catch small insects, fish, amphibians, and crustaceans. See them run across the water before taking flight and skidding across the water as they land.
Fun Fact: Hooded Mergansers have an extra eyelid that is see-thru. They use this nictitating membrane like a pair of goggles when swimming.
Photo Credit: Andy Waldo and Dan Kon
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Fulvous Whistling-Duck

Fulvous Whistling-Ducks, Dendrocygna bicolor, are found year-round in rice fields in central Florida. Look for them in flooded pastures, irrigated lands, ponds, lakes, freshwater marshes, slow-moving rivers, and freshwater wetlands. Once known as the Fulvous Tree Duck, these birds roost in the trees of forested areas next to their water source. They may flock with Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks. As winter approaches, watch for them to appear in greater numbers in freshwater marshes and wetlands.
These striking caramel and black ducks with their oversized bluish-gray legs forage in water that is less than 20 inches deep. Dinner consists of mostly seeds from aquatic plants and some invertebrates. Fulvous Whistling-Ducks can be seen wading or swimming while foraging by diving, tipping up, or dabbling to find food with their bills. Their thick bills are made to filter the food from the mud. You may also find them plucking an insect from vegetation for a tasty snack.
In mid-April, Fulvous Whistling-Ducks leave their flocks to begin the mating season. Mated pairs are bonded for years and sometimes for life, although the males may sometimes mate with more than one female. Together, the male and female choose the nest site in a dense marsh above the water or on the ground near the water. They build the nest by weaving stalks and grasses into a 14-inch bowl shape that is 4.3 inches deep. Most include a ramp to the water. The clutch size is 2 – 14 eggs and the female and male share the task of incubation for 24 – 25 days. Although the young leave the nest soon after hatching, instinctually know how to swim and dive as well as forage., both parents look after them until they fledge two months later.
Photo Credit: Dan Kon
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Cinnamon Teal

Cinnamon Teal Spatula cyanoptera (septentrionalium) –

This beautiful male Cinnamon Teal decided to visit Florida in February. As you can see in the map pictured below, these migratory ducks are native to the western US and Mexico. According to The Cornell Lab, “In western North America, loss of wetlands to agriculture, grazing, and especially the development of human settlements has meant the massive loss of habitat for Cinnamon Teal.”

We are sure this striking bird found plenty to eat in the wetlands at Merrit Island National Wildlife Refuge. There is certainly a wide variety of insects and vegetation year-round in Florida. While it is a rare occurrence, Cinnamon Teals do occasionally make a winter stop in Florida.

Photo Credit: Andy Waldo

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