Expert: Roger Lederer - 4/7/2005

Question
Rodger,

Yesterday while visiting a duck pond with my children at a park we came across a tiny baby duck swimming by himself and clearly not happy.  We were able to get a hold of him when he came to the water's edge but we weren't sure what to do with him.  I knew that without his mother he would become owl bait that night.  I put him in a nest of other babies that we saw there but I was later worried that that mother duck would not except him.  Do you know about duck behavior?  What are your opinions on this?  Thank you
Tanya

Answer
Once ducks hatch they do not go back to the nest, so I don't know what kind of nest you put him back in. If it had babies in it, it was probably not a duck's nest. I don't know how you determined the duck was not happy - maybe he was making noise or looking confused, but he is probably best off to be left alone. His mother is most likely around somewhere looking for him and they will eventually meet up. Any other mother will not accept and care for him. I'm sure you mean well, but in most cases the best course of action is to leave the bird find his or her own way because they know better than we do. For more information on wild birds, see www.ornithology.com