14 Apr 2026

8 Apr 26 - Signs Of Spring Part 8 - Some Early Ducklings

On of the great things about Spring is seeing the next generation of Birds. I had seen my first group of five Mallard ducklings with mum on Brownsea on 1 Apr, however, I didn't manage to get any photos. A week later, this female Mallard wandered along the main National Trust path next to the DWT gazebo. There were eighteen ducklings, albeit I only managed to fit the first fifteen into this photo. Hopefully, these will be the first of many chicks on the Brownsea reserve this year.
Mallard with fifteen of her ducklings: The others had better learn to keep up, if they don't want a Great Black-backed Gull to have an easy meal