Ducks in central Texas

[lovinlife]

My parents have a large pond and recently added four adult ducks to the pond. They grew up on a stock tank about an hour from here and managed tonsurvive just fine. Since they arrived, three have disappeared. Yesterday, the drake had an injured foot and was limping. Now he's missing. We are at a loss for what could have happened to them.

It could be raccoons, but there have been no feathers on the bank to indicate that they were attacked there. I've heard of snapping turtles biting the duck's feet then dragging them under water. There are a ton of red eared sliders in the pond, not sure about snappers. Some of the bass in the pond are quite large, but I can't imagine they would be able to eat a full sized duck.

Anyone in central Texas have any ideas about what could be eating their ducks? I'm scared to put mine on the pond... I don't want them to disappear too.

 

[Kevin565]

It sounds like a snapper. Sometimes just a few can live in a pond and you'd never even know. Also the hawk population has increased considerably from last year. (I live in waco)

 

[bt03]

Bobcat... We live pretty far from their regular hangout but with the drought they have come looking for water. Even if it's from a kiddie pool like mine. They take them completely with no feathers or blood or anything at all left behind. They are surprisingly populous all over TX.

 

[lovinlife]

We had a bobcat around our place for a while. A friend of mine told me her husband hit something on the highway by our house and when he went back to see what it was, it was a bobcat. He had eaten quite a few of my guineas. After that, I didn't lose any birds for a while.

It could be that we have another bobcat. I've lost about five chickens in the last month with no trace. My husband just now told me that he saw a bobcat track on the dam by the pond. Good grief. Now he'll have to hunt hogs AND bobcat.

I also think the turtles could be causing problems. The drake with the limp could have gotten bit by a turtle and then been easy prey for the bobcat.