IMG_8079
For weeks at the Elkhart County Parks Admin. Office, we observed a female mallard on her nest.
She had chosen a fairly conspicuous corner by the side door, but had successfully avoided detection thanks to her camoflagued feathers and nest. By the time we noticed, she had alreadty laid a clutch of 9 eggs.
She started incubating on April 12, and on May 14 (just two days after Mother's Day), her chicks finally hatched and were revving to go.
There was some anxiety about her journey the river. Any route she chose ran risks of car strikes and heavy casualties. Fortunately, our staff were nearby the moment the mallard chose to leave the nest. We kept our distance, only taking action to act as a crossguard and move some of the chicks off the busy road. The chicks were quick to adapt and maneuver around their new maze of concrete parking lots and curbs.
In the end, the entire mallard family made it successfully to the water's edge. Now their real journey begins.
---
Elkhart County Parks Administrative Office - Goshen, IN (Elkhart County) - May 14, 2024
IMG_8079
For weeks at the Elkhart County Parks Admin. Office, we observed a female mallard on her nest.
She had chosen a fairly conspicuous corner by the side door, but had successfully avoided detection thanks to her camoflagued feathers and nest. By the time we noticed, she had alreadty laid a clutch of 9 eggs.
She started incubating on April 12, and on May 14 (just two days after Mother's Day), her chicks finally hatched and were revving to go.
There was some anxiety about her journey the river. Any route she chose ran risks of car strikes and heavy casualties. Fortunately, our staff were nearby the moment the mallard chose to leave the nest. We kept our distance, only taking action to act as a crossguard and move some of the chicks off the busy road. The chicks were quick to adapt and maneuver around their new maze of concrete parking lots and curbs.
In the end, the entire mallard family made it successfully to the water's edge. Now their real journey begins.
---
Elkhart County Parks Administrative Office - Goshen, IN (Elkhart County) - May 14, 2024