The Wild Duck Chase

The beginning of the wild duck chase from yesterday was here; trouble was brewing in the local duck pond as the mallards were trying to see who was the strongest and best. It is springtime after all...

Low Flying

I know, this photo is blurry and out of focus, but I like it anyway, mainly because of the surprise when I saw it on the screen and realized I'd captured just the right wings of the three mallards. I'd been out shooting in the local park when I saw these three ducks chase each other all over so I started panning and shooting, getting quite a few photos of trees, bushes and the occasional duck in flight. The result was nowhere near what 'd hoped, except for this one.

How Many in a Litter?

How many ducklings can there be in a litter? This duck was lying on quite a number of ducklings, I'm not even sure how many there were. This photo was taken near the Frederiksberg Garden, a big and nice park in Copenhagen.

Going under

The common pochard is obviously a diving duck as can be seen here. This one was in fact diving under the ice of pond, staying out of sight for a considerably time.

How many?

If you study this photo you might notice that this mallard is a bit peculiar, as it seems to have three wings. It is, of cause, two mallards landing at the same time.

Wigeon in flight

The wigeons of yesterday's post kept circling your's truly, giving me amble time to get some decent shots of them in flight.

A flock of wigeons

A large flock of wigeons were congregating on the green lawns of the park Valbyparken when thaw came to Copenhagen.

The Eye

When out playing for the first time with a new toy of mine, a Sigma 150-500mm lens, I got the evil eye from this tufted duck, as it was drifting along the creek. The ducks should be used to the fella with the camera by now, but maybe I caught it at a wrong time.

Another day, another duck

This tufted duck was photographed just a few minutes walk from my home in Copenhagen like so many other of the birds, I've shown you lately. And like most of the others, this one was a bit shy too...

A Common Pochard

This winter have really taught me something about the wildlife near the city that I've lived in for more than 20 years. Until now I didn't realise how many different ducks and birds actually live around me. This female common pochard is a good example of that fact, as I had to look it up just to get the name right for you! And then I realized it's one of the more common ones here, even though they are hugely outnumbered by the mallards.

A Common Teal

Another common duck in Denmark at the moment is this Common Teal or Eurasian Teal. Standing on one leg on the edge of the ice it probably longs for the spring, as do everyone else.

Ducks on ice

The mallards of Copenhagen try to get the best out of a harsh winter. These two even try to get their feet up under the feathers to preserve some heat.

Like a duck in water

This mallard really likes to be in water. The "show" went on for 10 minutes or so in Valbyparken, a park in Copenhagen.

Chaos

When people feed the birds at the ponds in the parks of Copenhagen word tend to get around pretty quickly. The resulting chaos of ducks, gulls, pigeons and other birds can be rather fun to photograph.

Fighting for food

When visiting the parks of Copenhagen you'll actually notice how much wildlife that has adapted to city life. Especially the birds enjoy the availably food. From time to time they have to fight for it though like this duck that tries to escape an attack from a couple of sea gulls. It did get away with its bread ... this time.