With only a week to go before Disco's ducklings were due to hatch...bad news ! A couple of nights ago I heard a commotion coming from Disco in the garden, something had spooked her off her nest.
I suspect it may have been a Mouse getting underneath her warm nest on a frosty night. The upshot was, she would not go back to her large clutch, around 18 eggs ! After a couple of hours I decided to check the nest and felt the eggs which were pretty cold.
Realising the potential disaster, I took 10 of the eggs and put them in the incubator, in the hope that they can be saved. I will know in about a weeks time, but I don't hold out much hope, as they were pretty cold after several hours during a very cold night.
By Morning Disco had returned to the nest and has resumed her normal routine sitting on the remaining eggs. I will be astonished if any survive with only a week of incubation remaining and getting so cold. Previous years she has nested in the safety of the coop, this year she opted for outdoors in the aviary which is not Mouse proof ! The incubator has 2 other duck eggs, salvaged from an abandoned nest attacked by gulls! I'm hopeful these might hatch in a weeks time.
Meanwhile, Donnie awaits the big day.
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