Well, an impostor among the Dirty Divas, that is. I think one may very well be...A BOY! Well, a drake, technically, but a boy nonetheless. What makes me think this? Two things. Three actually. Wait, four.
Number one....remember this post about our first eggs when I said we noticed some odd duck behavior in the pool? One duck was surfing on another's back and hanging on to it's neck feathers with its beak? Faith from over at Lemonade Adventures commented and said that she thought it was mating behavior. At the time I thought it was funny, because they are all girls! Right? RIGHT? I'm not so sure now!
So...number two. We had this one egg that we found in their play yard instead of in the coop. It was different than the others. It was darker, kind of splotchy looking. I thought maybe since it sat outside for who knows how long it was just a bad egg. Since we are new to this whole duck and egg thing, I marked it with a black X with the intention of looking into it further. However, I went ahead and put it in a carton with other eggs until I could get back to it, because you know I am a busy mom and all, and my husband gave that dozen to a friend of his! Which was lovely, but then he found out that when they cracked that egg with the X there was an embryo in it! Or so that is what they think it was. Since I didn't get to see it, and probably wouldn't know what I was looking at if I had, I have no clue if that is what it really was. Man, I wish I could have seen it!
Number three...there is one duck that does not sound the same as the others. It never has. I never gave it much thought...until now!
Number four...we ordered a straight run of 15 Khaki Campbell female chicks and they threw in an extra chick, as hatcheries tend to do, so perhaps number sixteen IS a boy?
So my suspicions are heightened and I have a lot of observation to do to get to the bottom of this foul mystery!
Can you spot the fake...I mean Drake?
Me neither. But I'll keep you updated on this investigation!!! Oh and one more thing, if there is a boy, I will be absolutely thrilled! I had planned on getting a couple this spring! :)
Isn't it great when things just work out the way you wanted? I hope you got your drake and of course I hope to see pictures of baby ducks...
ReplyDeleteWell, I'm pretty interested to find out! What a good mystery.
ReplyDeleteI will say though, that the funny egg may have just been from one of the newer layers, they tend to look really different and lay where they are, like it's a surprise. (At least my newly laying hens do.) And those funny splotchy eggs seem to be the most likely to have a little blood clot or anomoly in them that many people take for a fertilized egg. It's not, and around here can't be because I don't have any roosters.
But I thought the same thing about the surfing duck. That it might have been mating.
Maybe the Divas are dirtier than you thought... ;)
I keep singing....'dude looks like a lady!'.....LOL
ReplyDeleteI think I may have the same situation....waiting for mating, crowing or egg laying.
Would be nice to have ONE rooster....I'd like some babies.
If I cracked and egg and found an embryo, I would faint.
what a fun surprise that would be
ReplyDeletehow exciting!
we want a daddy duck here...but just so we can have cute baby duckies :)
i actually was a little relieved we had all girls so there were no breakfast abortions with the eggs
i would pass straight out i think
the drake should have a dark head and a curled tail feather, no?
i pulled up pics at www.cacklehathery.com and that looked to be so
also thanks for your post on my down a duck
it was a false alarm good-bye post
the duck is still here!
she was hiding out alone...how often does a duck seperate from the rest for so long and cannot be found high or low when it's bright white?
so, i'm happy the dogs kept the coyotes from the ducks
she was probably being extra cautious with all the commotion
oh, and we do shut them up at night, but they are out in the day
this all happened at about 7am when i thought the coyotes should be in bed
Jennifer, look well at each duck. drakes sometimes have one curled tail feather. Girls never do
ReplyDeletelol! what a cute post! i wondered, like faith said, the last time you posted about the divas, with that "surfing" behavior. i see that with my husbands racing pigeons. he calls it "driving" when the cocks are pecking around the back of the hens heads. his pigeons are a randy lot and usually when i see that driving behavior, very shortly there is a mating. i mean, within minutes!lol well how cool you got your drake early i believe!!! big herbal and honey hugs to you jennifer:)
ReplyDelete