Sunday 29 April 2012

Sunday safari.

Mallards are frequent visitors to the garden.   This poor female, has been chased around by so many suitors during the past week, she often comes to the garden for a little peace and quiet.
When I fed her this morning I noticed she had difficulty walking.     She seems to have a problem with her right leg.      Nella has been confined to the front garden......for the mallards safety.

I am a little concerned for her as we have a family of stoats in the garden at the moment.
Hopefully she will fly away to one of the natural ponds, and find some sanctuary there.

It is still raining...........I think I am starting to grow webbed feet :)

Happy Sunday safari.

16 comments:

ShySongbird said...

Lovely photos of poor Mrs Mallard! I'm glad she has found some temporary sanctuary with you. The drakes can be extremely persistent! I do hope her leg heals or she will as you imply find herself very vulnerable to predators.

The weather has gone from bad to worse here! We have driving rain and extremely high winds. I have already heard of many, many ground nests being washed away, now I am fearing for the tree nesters too :-( All those migrants must be wishing they had stayed where they were!

Cheryl said...

Hi Jan,

Mrs Mallard has flown. The drakes returned and she took flight....just hope that she is okay.

I found several eggs on the garden floor this morning......I have quite a few birds nesting in trees, and it would appear the wind has brought the nests down.....sigh

Crystal said...

Hope Mrs Mallard is okay. At least she managed to get a bit of a rest in your garden. And she won't mind the rain, it'll be like water off a .......oh you know what I mean.

Cheryl said...

Hi Crystal,,

Ha, yes indeed :)

Liz said...

Hi Cheryl,

Sun tomorrow and 18C!!!

Then back to rain and cooler temps for Tuesday onwards...

Oh well. I'll enjoy tomorrow when I can!

Hope Mrs Mallard is OK, no doubt been injured by one of the males :(

Q said...

So many critters take rest in your gardens....So sorry to read about the winds.
I do hope the birds re-nest and lay again. The weather is very unsettled. Climate change is here to stay. We all must find ways to adjust.
The Rain Dragons did return to my gardens.
I fell asleep last night to their thunder and sat in the rain with the birds today.
Happy Sunday safari....
Sherry

Wendy said...

Hope Mrs. Mallard found a nice pond to swim and rest on. Too bad about the winds and bird eggs on the ground.

Happy Sunday Safari - I enjoyed your pics as usual.

Cheryl said...

Hi Liz,

I have woken up to sunshine and blue skies :)
Sadly I will not be able to work in the garden, as the grass is like a sponge full of water.

Cheryl said...

DEar Sherry,

The mallard left yesterday and as yet I have not seen her this morning. I hope that she is okay.

Glad the rain dragons are back with you.....I have heard they are returning to my gardens on Wednesday (perhaps you would keep them just a little bit longer :)

Climate change is without doubt here....I am learning to adjust, I just hope that the flora and fauna will be able to, without any serious damage to the planet.

Happy Sunday safari my friend.

Rose said...

I'm glad to see in your comments that Mrs. Mallard has flown away to safety. I always feel so helpless when I see injured wildlife.

Those webbed feet might actually come in handy walking around your garden these days:)

Lisa at Greenbow said...

The Mallard will probably be alright. They are amazingly strong. I know your webbed feet come in handy after all this rain. I hope the resivoirs are filling up.

Cheryl said...

Hi Lisa,

You are right, they are strong. She came back this evening with her admirers in two.....

Yes my webbed feet are really useful.....I am actually thinking of making an arc.

Sarah Shoesmith said...

Phew - great news that Mrs M is OK!

It's frustrating to finally have a sunny day and to be able to do so little in the garden because it's so waterlogged. Here's hoping your lawn dries out soon.

I look forward to your next post... and an update on the beautiful Mrs M.

Rebes said...

Dear Cheryl,

I am currently making a new BBC 1 Wildlife series and was hoping to have a chat with you about the incredible things you have done with your garden. The series I am making focuses on what ordinary people can do in their own back gardens to encourage wildlife and it would be great to hear more from you. I appreciate that you have stopped blogging but I would love to have a chat and hear more! Please do drop me a line on rebeccal@outlineproductions.co.uk or call me on 0207 424 7652. If you can think of anyone else please do let me know too!

Kind Regards,
Rebecca

Cheryl said...

Hi Rebecca,

Will be in touch......

Brenda Kay Ledford said...

Wow! These are lovely photos of nature. I hope the rain ceases and you can get some sun soon. Loved your photos.