Greetings,
We have a domestic Muscovy duck nesting in a tree limb that is out of reach, so we were unable to collect the eggs. We think they are hatching now because we found a couple of eggshells on the ground under the nest and the mother has been very busy. It's also been about the correct amount of time since the mother began sitting on the nest. Since it is late in the season and cold for ducklings, we have set up a "duck trap" under the nest to corral the ducklings when they land on the ground after jumping out of the nest. Do the ducklings ever come out of the nest for the first time at night? We are assuming they will come out during the day since the adults tend to roost at night. We are worried about predators because the duck trap is not predator proof. It is just to contain them until we can move them to a safer location.
Thank you for your insight!
Winnie's Mom
We have a domestic Muscovy duck nesting in a tree limb that is out of reach, so we were unable to collect the eggs. We think they are hatching now because we found a couple of eggshells on the ground under the nest and the mother has been very busy. It's also been about the correct amount of time since the mother began sitting on the nest. Since it is late in the season and cold for ducklings, we have set up a "duck trap" under the nest to corral the ducklings when they land on the ground after jumping out of the nest. Do the ducklings ever come out of the nest for the first time at night? We are assuming they will come out during the day since the adults tend to roost at night. We are worried about predators because the duck trap is not predator proof. It is just to contain them until we can move them to a safer location.
Thank you for your insight!
Winnie's Mom