Mallards, widgeons, fill the sky
Each one calling out their cry,
“Wait for me,” and “Watch my space,”
Desperate to keep up the pace.
In the lee by stands of trees,
Sheltered swans it seems to please,
In a line of purest white,
Feeling safe, to their delight.

For the ducks, a numbers game,
Many of them look the same,
Feeling safe amid the crowd,
They don’t mind if they are loud.
In this field of scraps they find
Food enough to feed their kind,
So much harvest overlooked,
Ducks don’t mind if it’s not cooked.

Look quite closely, you will see
Old potatoes – one, two, three,
If these spuds are not fermented,
Hungry ducks won’t get demented.

Writing, travel, photography, nature, more writing....
October 12, 2023 at 3:03 pm
What a great post, Anneli! And all those birds – what huge numbers!
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October 12, 2023 at 10:42 pm
I think they told each other about the leftover potatoes and so the crowd of birds grew.
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October 12, 2023 at 10:55 pm
I bet they do communicate good feeding grounds as they need so many calories for their migration. Our local mallards aren’t getting ready to leave because they overwinter. They’re fed well with grain and veggies in December and January and are rather protected.
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October 13, 2023 at 3:16 pm
It’s good when they have a reasonably comfortable place to overwinter and don’t have to risk all the dangers of migration.
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October 13, 2023 at 9:34 pm
I agree, Anneli. It’s a much better situation for them; far safer.
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October 12, 2023 at 3:21 pm
It is like the birds know that autumn is soon coming to an end. Same here right now as the waterbirds muster for migration. Happy Thursday Anneli. Allan
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October 12, 2023 at 10:42 pm
They are amazing at being weather forecasters.
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October 12, 2023 at 3:22 pm
My gosh! I’ve been wondering where our mallards are. They’re probably not in your field, but I’ll bet they’re still up north somewhere. The teal have come down, and the ospreys are arriving, but there’s probably a reason duck season is scheduled for early November!
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October 12, 2023 at 10:44 pm
I agree. They schedule the seasons to suit the migrations. This farm is in the valley here, but not in my own yard – you’re right.
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October 12, 2023 at 5:04 pm
Wonderful post, Anneli!
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October 12, 2023 at 10:44 pm
Thanks, Carol.
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October 12, 2023 at 6:11 pm
Lovely poem. I have never seen ducks congregate in a field like that, only geese on their migration.
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October 12, 2023 at 10:44 pm
The farms here do attract a lot of birds.
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October 12, 2023 at 10:29 pm
Beautiful poem, Anneli! Mallards are attractive ducks. We have a few here this time of the year.
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October 12, 2023 at 10:45 pm
I love seeing and hearing the flocks flying over.
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October 12, 2023 at 11:56 pm
Nice Poem and pictures. Must be loud on this field. Looks like the birds are getting ready to leave, Fall is here.
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October 13, 2023 at 3:18 pm
Thanks, Ursula. A lot of them will leave but a good number of them stay every year. It’s nice that they have lots to eat.
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October 14, 2023 at 7:06 am
Wow, Anneli. Fantastic photos. Your “Waterfowl” story is WONDERFUL. Ha ha ha. Love seeing all these gatherings of the birds.
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October 14, 2023 at 11:56 am
Thanks, Sonja. It really is great to see so many.
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October 14, 2023 at 12:06 pm
Wonderful fun poem, Anneli, and really terrific story and photos of the current migration. I loved seeing the narrow ribbon of swans in the far distance–so many!–and also all the ducks. On top of the mallards I also saw a few American Wigeons joining the party. Really enjoyed this, thank you.
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October 14, 2023 at 12:07 pm
The swans show up better if you click to enlarge the photo, and I hoped some people would do that. It was great to see so many birds in one place.
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October 14, 2023 at 12:18 pm
Just did…so lovely! Beautiful colors in the fields, too.
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October 14, 2023 at 2:11 pm
Thanks, Jet.
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October 14, 2023 at 2:37 pm
This was so much fun, Anneli!
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October 14, 2023 at 4:03 pm
Thanks, Jennie. Glad you enjoyed your visit.
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October 15, 2023 at 5:47 am
You’re welcome!
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October 15, 2023 at 11:00 am
Well done Anneli. The cadence of the verses is filled with the rhythm of each hungry bird arriving.
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October 15, 2023 at 11:04 am
Thanks for reading, Richard. It really was a huge flock. Fortunately there were a lot of potatoes left in the ground after the harvest. I hope they got to most of them before the potatoes turned into vodka.
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October 27, 2023 at 1:13 pm
That’s quite a flock. It’s getting to the time of year when wintering wildfowl arrive in the UK, too. Geese from the Arctic.
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October 27, 2023 at 3:07 pm
Wonderful sights to see when they are all together like that.
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