Mama marches the next generation into the future.

Though why these ducklings are on a canal towpath rather than in the water is a mystery.

#waterfowl #duck #duckling #canal #CanalLife #UK

Swan say "Got bread?"
But what does the fox say?

I saw this swan along the canal, today. It perked right up when it saw me boating along, because as far as the swan is concerned, boat=bread.

But not every boat. And as we all know from Psychology 101, intermittent reinforcement is the hardest kind of conditioning to break.

Feed them once and these birds will ALWAYS beg for bread—and hiss if there's none.

#CanalLife #canal #boating #boat #narrowboat #swan #MuteSwan #bird #waterfowl #wildlife

Nine hours of hard boating got me as far as a 40-minute car ride.
On average, it's 3 miles/hour, and 3 locks/hour.

The boat is big, so there were lots of nervous ducks and geese in the water, and nervous lambs on land. The first ducklings of the year were only 3 in number; the others either fell prey or failed to hatch. Also a nesting swan and nesting goose. Only one moor hen.

#CanalLife #canal #boating #boat #narrowboat #SlowSpeed #waterfowl #duck #duckling #goose #lamb #sheep #swan #MoorHen

I almost missed #WildlifeWednesday so, here is a last minute submission - a cute female mallard resting in a small pond.

Despite being general jerks, and very common, Mallards are actually one of my favourite ducks. The females have that incredibly gorgeous purple flair under their wing that I always love seeing.

#ducks #mallard #wildlife #waterfowl #wildlifephotography #photography

A rather dashing pair

Hooded Merganser

#birds #birding #nature #waterfowl