canberrabirds

Cryptic Wood Ducks

To: Birding-Aus <>, Canberra Birds <>
Subject: Cryptic Wood Ducks
From: Paul Taylor <>
Date: Mon, 11 Apr 2005 23:02:20 +1000
While at the Newline Quarry site near Canberra Airport on Sunday,
I encountered a female Wood Duck with seven ducklings on the small dam.
As I approached, they left the dam on the far side, and disappeared
behind a bramble/thorn bush.

When I had walked around the other side of the dam, I wondered where
they had gone.  Scanning along the edge of the dam, I found them sitting
not far from where I last saw them.  The female was sitting very low
and motionless, with her neck stretched out at ground level; the seven
ducklings were sitting close around her.  Despite the lack of ground
cover to hide in, the camouflage of her mottling and eyestripe - and
those of the ducklings - were very effective and they could have been
overlooked as a piece of, er, wood.  At no time did they make a sound.

-- 

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
   Paul Taylor                                  Veni, vidi, tici -
                           I came, I saw, I ticked.

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