Whilst out walking this morning I witnessed three (it might actually have been more) Mallard Ducklings tumble down through the foliage and branches of a mature Oak Tree.
Two fell in quick succession and I went to investigate. Then a third landed by me as I was tending to one concussed chick.
The mother and 5 of her brood were also at the base of this tree and as I approached, she waddled off back the 50m back to the pond.
I repatriated two ducklings into her route march and one more I set down on the pond; that one seemed very confused and not a little concussed!
Later I found a fourth which I too set down on the pond.

How common is this sort of thing, a mother duck giving birth to her young way up in the branches of a tree?
It looked at one point like the it was raining ducklings from the tree!

How common is this sort of thing, a mother duck giving birth to her young way up in the branches of a tree?

it’s very uncommon.

ducks tend to lay eggs rather than give birth to young…

It’s fairly common for them to nest in trees.

damn i always pictured a mother duck in labour for hours and hours…. 😆

There were a family of ducks on one of the balconies above the canal near where I work, the owners of the flat lowered the ducklings into the canal in a colander 😀

Natural selection I guess. In fact, I could think of some humans who should give birth at the top of a tall tree.

I think generally the mortality rate of ducklings is pretty high, but they’re fascinating creatures to watch imho. Lots of them nesting around a cabin we frequently visit on the Thames, and it’s all a bit of a duck soap opera. We also have a pair who basically live in our garden at home (we’re about quarter of a mile from a huge lake). In fact they’ll even waddle into the house if the garden doors are open. We frequently get other drakes fly in to try & shag the poor girly duck, much to the annoyance of her mate, who tries to peck the imposter (usually unsuccessfully) as he gets on with business. Best bit is watching them come into land in the garden, which is most entertaining. Ducks are definitely not designed to land on anything other than water.

Not uncommon for them to be up high anyway..

Man saves ducklings from ledge (aaaaaawh!)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8058221.stm

the owners of the flat lowered the ducklings into the canal in a colander

please, please, I’ve GOT to see pics of this :o)

I wish there were any SFB, but they didn’t take any 🙁 (I didn’t see it, the people were friends of my boss and he told me about it)

Some ducks have been nesting in our garden. Ma is sat on the eggs right now. I’ll post the pics up, hopefully, when they hatch 8)

That news clip has cheered me right up before my ramp test 😀 so cute

That’s some good catching!

trailmonkey, got your expenses claim for the duck island in?

Why not, I’ve done nothing wrong. It’s in the rules. You’re all jealous etc, etc.

I didn’t catch any, but I was agog when I saw them falling through the canopy of the tree. One missed me by 3ft.
One little-un was out cold, so I gave him / her the most help, another was swimming like mad, ‘cept he was sunnyside down and making no progress at all ’til I set him right!
The last one we found with the help of a pointer dog, the last of her brood, lost in the long grass and so I popped him onto the pond too.
Tim