In the Field: Photo Blog by Richard Wong

Photography field reports by Richard Wong. Richard’s work has been published in magazines, books, advertising, and offers fine art prints of his work. Images may be licensed as rights-managed stock photos by contacting Richard directly at Richard@rwongphoto.com or (626) 422-6151. California stock photography, fine art prints, photo blog: www.rwongphoto.com

A Day in the Life of a Baby Wood Duck

Posted on | April 14, 2007 |

My new addiction to bird photography is growing. What I am posting here pretty much sums up why I find this type of photography to be so exciting. I took these over the course of three hours at the Cal State Fullerton University Arboretum on Thursday afternoon.

Baby Wood Duck Chick (Aix sponsa) With Dirt in Mouth, CSU Fullerton Arboretum, California Picture: Baby Wood Duck Chick (Aix sponsa) With Earthworm in Mouth, CSU Fullerton Arboretum, California

I spotted a family of wood ducks almost immediately after arriving, but some poorly-parented little girls kept scaring them back into the water by running after them and throwing bread at them. That was really frustrating to see. I wanted to throw those stupid little kids and their ignorant parents into the pond and see how they felt. Once they left, the baby wood ducks kept approaching me and looking for earthworms near my feet because they knew who I am apparently and wanted some publicity on the internet for their cause. So I laid my tripod on it’s side flat on the ground and took eye-level photos of these baby wood duck chicks within touching distance. The cutest moment I have ever seen in my life.

Female Mother Wood Duck Protecting Family of Chicks by Fighting Off Rival Mallard Duck, CSU Fullerton Arboretum, California Photo: Female Mother Wood Duck Protecting Family of Chicks by Fighting Off Rival Mallard Duck, CSU Fullerton Arboretum, California

While a thrill-seeking photographer such as myself posed no threat to the birds, other ducks were. Notice the baby wood duck chicks hiding behind the mother wood duck as a mallard approaches them. Might be a little hard to see in this little thumbnail but they are clearly visible in the original file. When I was photographing the ducks at the L.A. County Arboretum I couldn’t figure out why the ducks were so hostile and defensive to other birds. Well this photo below might offer an insight as to why that is.

Great Blue Heron Kills Baby Wood Duck Chick for Meal, CSU Fullerton Arboretum, California Picture: Great Blue Heron Kills Baby Wood Duck Chick for Meal, CSU Fullerton Arboretum, California

By the time I took the 2nd photo, the mother was protecting four wood duck chicks. My initial photos of the wood duck family when I arrived at the CSU Fullerton Arboretum consisted five or six chicks… This is a day in the life of a baby wood duck.

www.rwongphoto.com
Category: Uncategorized
Tags: >

Comments

6 Responses to “A Day in the Life of a Baby Wood Duck”

  1. Ron Niebrugge
    April 20th, 2007 @ 10:05 am

    Hey Richard,

    Great post! Baby Wood Ducks, I would love to spend time with them. Dramatic shot of the Heron.

    Are you the same person who wrote this on my blog just a few months ago? LOL:

    “Maybe I’m mistaken but I don’t understood why bird photographers are so excited about shooting ducks at Santee. Some birds are excxiting but ducks don’t particularly strike me as such. “

  2. Richard
    April 20th, 2007 @ 10:16 am

    lol Ron. I am an ego-maniacal hypocrite. I knew that would come back to haunt me when I wrote this. At the time, I hadn’t figured out what I wanted to do with ducks. I just knew that I didn’t want bird on a stick type of shots.

  3. Richard
    April 20th, 2007 @ 10:18 am

    FYI: After seeing your golden water reflection of the wood duck, it made me interested.

  4. Summiteer
    May 25th, 2007 @ 8:59 am

    Great images. Love the last one.
    - Paul @ http://www.photographyvoter.com

  5. Pat Scanlan
    May 14th, 2009 @ 3:25 pm

    We put up a nest box in April 09, the next day the male and female were checking it out. The female laid 10 eggs, the babies jumped out 3 days ago! I don’t have a great camera and had to take the picture from my window so as not to scare the hen…it was awesome!

  6. Richard Wong
    May 14th, 2009 @ 10:45 pm

    I bet that was an awesome experience Pat. It would be interesting enough to have randomly seen it but given that you were involved with it makes it that much more special.

Leave a Reply