[Rhodes22-list] Storage on old Rhodes

[elle]

Ben,
I think she's a really smart one...these 'dumb' animals are not so dumb as we would like to think...she's hidden, protected, and the babies are safe from predators. How dumb is that?
Moving her & babies is not such a good idea...the eggs will become a feast (snakes, nutria, and the mother will not abandon if she is threatened...) if the nest is not hidden as the mother would do...as she has done!
Within a day or so after hatching you can scoop up the babies  & she'll take them to a safe place.(ever hold a newborn duck??? They quack like there's no tomorrow & turn their their heads 360 degrees!!!! It is a riot.
You've got a ringside seat...surely you can postpone a few days on the water..;^)

elle

Beer is good....people are crazy

1992 Rhodes 22    Recycled '06"Watermusic"  {Lady in Red}

--- On Thu, 4/1/10, Ben Schultz <benonvelvetelvis at theskinnyonbenny.com> wrote:

From: Ben Schultz <benonvelvetelvis at theskinnyonbenny.com>
Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Storage on old Rhodes
To: "'The Rhodes 22 Email List'" <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
Date: Thursday, April 1, 2010, 11:26 AM

Here's an issue I haven't seen on the list before.

Last weekend, I was doing some routine cleaning and maintenance in
preparation for our annual easter weekend overnight trip.  All was going
fine, until I saw a female mallard hop aboard.  While it amused me for a
second, I figured out what was up as soon as she disappeared.  

Under the starboard seats, she sat in the middle of my coiled anchor rode on
somewhere between 6 and 10 eggs.  I stuck my face down there, and we sat
looking at each other, eye to eye, and inches away.  She let me take some
pics.  Here's one --

http://theskinnyonbenny.com/img/duck.jpg

I'm afraid that if I sail, she'll fly off, and then she won't know where to
find her nest.  I'm thinking of trying to move the nest (and the crumbling
Rubbermaid that it's in) onto the dock.  I've got a giant spatula that I use
to flip crumbly fish on the grill.  Maybe I'll put it in a sideways box or
something.  I figure she's stupid enough not to know the difference, and I
don't think that it will be found by a neighborhood cat or nutria if I leave
it pretty close to where the boat is tied.

Anyone have different suggestions?  (Other than making her into a gumbo)

Ben S.
Velvet Elvis


  

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