Late brood of ducklings surprises wildlife centre staff

08.12.11

Staff at our wildlife centre in East Sussex were surprised to welcome some unseasonal visitors – a flock of 13 ducklings.

Ducklings can normally be spotted splashing about in the water in spring or summer but staff at Mallydams Wood Wildlife Centre are caring for a very late brood.

The wild ducklings were spotted at a private pond in Beckley, near Peasmarsh, East Sussex, rounded-up by a concerned animal lover and brought into our wildlife centre.

Richard Thompson, wildlife rehabilitation team manager at the centre, said:

We are always inundated with ducklings earlier in the year, in the spring and the summer, but it’s very unusual for us to be caring for some at this time of year.

They are the latest ducklings I’ve ever known here.

 

Rehabilitating ducklings

The ducklings are being fed with special bird crumb at the centre to build up their strength and get them through the cold winter before being released back to where they were collected.

Richard said:

If they hadn’t been brought in to us they probably would not have survived. Ducklings primarily eat insects and duck weed so as the weather gets colder there would not be enough food for them.

We have got a heat lamp to keep them warm and we are introducing them to the water so they can waterproof their feathers and become accustomed to the weather.

The ducklings were just days old when they were brought into the centre on 19 November and will eventually be released back into the wild shortly before their flight feathers develop.

Adam Grogan, senior scientist from our wildlife department, said:
 

It's very unusual for wild mallard ducklings to hatch this late in the year.

Wild mallards normally lay their eggs in the spring and they take about a month to hatch. It's possible the mild weather may have played a role in this late brood but we cannot be sure.

The most likely explanation is that the ducklings are actually a domestic breed of duck which can produce eggs much later in the year.

Most domestic ducks have been bred from mallards and these ducklings could be the result of an encounter between a wild mallard and a domestic duck.

Our work with wildlife

We release, rehabilitate and care for thousands of animals each year. During 2010 our wildlife centres took in 16,446 animals.

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