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Waldo : ) (38)
manyee
![Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3067 W: 231 N: 6160]](http://i1.treknature.com/misc/g-g-g.gif) (21052) | This is Waldo. : )
He is a wood duck, come from who knows where.
He arrived sometime last week and has been hanging out at our neighborhood lake with the migrating mallards.
I have been going out to the lake to see him every day.
When people throw bread crumbs out, he comes to shore with all the mallards and pecks his way into the fray.
When all the green heads are down looking for food, it is very hard to find him in the crowd. Hence his name: Waldo (named after a children's book titled Where's Waldo?)
I hope you like him as much as I do.
Wood Duck
Aix sponsa
Canard branchu (French)
Pato de charreteras (Spanish)
A colorful duck of wooded swamps and streamsides, the Wood Duck is one of only a few North American ducks that nest in trees. Many people consider it to be the most beautiful of all waterfowl.
Sex Differences
Male brightly patterned, female dull gray brown.
Sound
Female makes loud "oo-eek, oo-eek" when disturbed and taking flight. Male has thin, rising and falling zeeting whistle.
Cool Facts
Natural cavities for nesting are scarce, and the Wood Duck readily uses nest boxes provided for it. If nest boxes are placed too close together, many females lay eggs in the nests of other females. These "dump" nests can have up to 40 eggs.
The Wood Duck nests in trees near water, sometimes directly over water, but other times up to 2 km (1.2 mi) away. After hatching, the ducklings jump down from the nest tree and make their way to water. The mother calls them to her, but does not help them in any way. The ducklings may jump from heights of up to 89 m (290 ft) without injury.
The Wood Duck is a popular game bird, and is second only to the Mallard in numbers shot each year in the United States.
Wood Ducks pair up in January, and most birds arriving at the breeding grounds in the spring are already paired. The Wood Duck is the only North American duck that regularly produces two broods in one year.
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