Need help retaming a duck

[motherhencharm]

So here is the situation. We have had pet chooks for a long time now and have never had any issues with them free ranging. About 4 months ago we got a few duck eggs of a friend and put them under a clucky chook hoping to end up with a few pet ducks. Sadly only one of them hatched and hes such a lovely little duck. He has always followed the chickens around and we have had no problem free ranging him.
Well we decided recently that maybe we could get another duck so our other duck would not be so lonely, so we purchased a female muscovy-pekin cross. We locked her and our other duck in the coop for a while to get to know each other and so she could learn that it was home.
Once she had a few meals with us I opened the coop and decided she could start her life as a free range duckie =). All went well for the first day and night. She followed the boy duck around and happily went in the coop for her dinner. We lock them away at night to keep them safe from stoats and ferrets but allow them to free range all day.
Well the next morning we let her out of the coop and she went down to the creek for a swim - and didn't come back =(.
The patch of creek she has decided to make her home is a very dense strip full with scrub, black berry etc. Its nearly impossible for us to get near her and even when we do trudge threw the undergrowth and get close she just jumps in the creek and swims futher down stream. Or crosses to the other side of the creek. Or runs easily threw the bush away from us. Even with two of us out there for a couple of hours we could not catch this duck. So we gave up and decided to just leave her be, she would get lonely eventually and come back up to the other birds. Well this plan is not working either.
I have tried enticing her out with food but thats not having much effect.
She seems pretty determined to become a wild duck!
Does anyone have any advice or helpful tips on how we can re tame this duck so she can join the others again.
I feel really terrible about this situation, I obviously should have kept her locked up longer then I did.

 

[bubbastump22]

wow.. To be honest im in the same situation.. i just got some ducks from a lady all drakes pretty as they can be.. and they seem nice but they hiss at me because i dont think they were handled much as babies... but i would say if u got to get some shade cloth and cut urself a path down to the creek if u can and use the shade cloth as a net.. now this means u might have to get wet but thats the only way i think u could possible get her..and its ok everyone makes mistakes..i have done the same thing and i had to chase my chickens all over 5 acres ...took hours to get them all back in.. but as far as taming her i would suggest when u can catch her put her back in the pen and lock her up..u can still let her out but u have to be outside to watch her so she dont go dwn again to the creek..but once u get her in the pen just start going in there for bout and hour or soo a day and sit there with some treats...pet her talk to her and gain her trust..i had to do this with my (Gander) so he would become tame cause b4 he was very nervous around me and was always chasing me as well as biting me...but now hes still got alittle attitude now since i started working..but now hes alot more tame and climbs on my lap and wants to get his back scratched. it takes time i will say that it took me over 2 weeks b4 he would come up to me but now hes always up my butt.. but thats the thing though when u get adult ducks/geese and other water fowl from other people is that you dont knw how tame they are if they even took time to make them sweet and friendly if they get along with others as well. so thats going to be my misson the next couple weeks is try to tame these ducks i got..lol

 

[tajuano]

Have you considered life trap, I know it sounds horrible, but then you can trap her and have her locked up for a couple of weeks, so she will get used to you.