Urban Ducks on the Move: Guiding Wandering Duck Families Safely
Guiding Duckling Excursions: tips for safeguely aiding duck families on their journeys - Guidelines for Securely Aiding Duckling Families
In recent headlines, stories of police rescuing little fluffy ducklings abound, with ten ducklings saved from the A67 motorway near Büttelborn, Hesse, and another group spotted on the A5 between Hemsbach and the Weinheim motorway interchange. As the mallard duck breeding season approaches, these adorable little swimmers can frequently be found waddling near city traffic. But, is this a safe journey for them?
What's behind this sudden migration?
Mallards, aquatic creatures predominantly found in shallow freshwater environments, typically start breeding around mid-March. Their offspring, hatched in April or May, usually join the mother shortly after, journeying to a nearby suitable body of water. In urban settings, these roads often pose a challenge, yet some ducks have adapted to navigate them for safety. A resourceful mother duck in Frankfurt, for instance, made a home in a fifth-floor flowerpot, away from potential predators, until she and her twelve babies were relocated by the Hessian State Office for Nature Conservation, Environment and Geology (HLNUG).
Why are these aquatic creatures unfazed by traffic noise?
"City animals, like ducks, get used to the city’s commotion over time," explains Torsten Collet from NABU Rhineland-Palatinate. As they learn that city noises are not always a threat, the din of traffic no longer scares the ducks. "The mother already knows the quickest and safest route to the body of water," adds Kostadin Georgiev from the HLNUG bird protection station.
Should ducklings be left to fend for themselves or do they require human assistance? Could another mother duck take them in?
Mallard ducklings are precocial, meaning from birth, they can feed themselves and rely on their mother for protection against predators and warmth. "These little ones can fend for themselves, but they do require their mother's close watch to learn what is safe to eat," says Collet. While it's theoretically possible for another mother duck to adopt orphaned ducklings, it's not a common occurrence.
If you encounter ducks on your own urban adventure, what should you do? Who can offer assistance?
Georgiev advises against intervening. In fact, it's illegal to take the ducklings without proper authorization. Ducklings in the company of their mother near roads with minimal traffic do not require human intervention. On busy highways and motorways, the police should be informed, who can also close the road for safety. In the cases where the birds are far from the nearest water body and must cross multiple lanes, it's essential to catch and transport them safely to the nearest body of water.
- Police
- Mother
- Wiesbaden
- Mainz
- Büttelborn
- Groß-Gerau
- Weinheim
- Mannheim
- Nature Conservation Association Germany e.V.
- Rhineland-Palatinate
Further Insights: During the breeding season, mallard ducks and their offspring often cross roads for several reasons: nesting and foraging, brood rearing, predator avoidance, and migration patterns. Ducks may move to urban areas for abundant food sources and nesting sites, cross roads to reach nearby wetlands, parks, or suitable habitats, and protect their young from predators and migrate to breeding grounds.
- The unexpected shift in urban ducks' behavior can be attributed to changes in their lifestyle, as they seek home-and-garden alternatives such as flowerpots, away from predators, during the breeding season.
- The conservation of fishery resources could benefit from learning about these urban ducks' adaptations to urban environments, as they demonstrate resilience and survival strategies in unusual settings, which may provide insights for policy and management of other species.
