Duckie Drama or The Adventures of Donny and Marie

Those of you who are my friends on Facebook already know the saga of Donny and Marie but for those of you who don't--here goes!

A couple of weeks ago I was out on the deck filling my two bird feeders when who should come paddling along but a pair of duckies. I threw some birdseed their way and they thoroughly enjoyed it. Next day--same two came visiting so I threw them some more birdseed. (BTW--NEVER, EVER feed ducks, birds etc bread. Not good for them!) So about this time I'm thinking I need to buy some duck chow for them The closest place to get stuff like this is Futrals which is about 45 minutes away. We had to go in that direction anyway to get a couple of propane tanks so we stopped and I got a 50 pound bag of chow--the smallest I could get. So, next time the duckies came around I threw some chow in the water but near the shore for them. Boy did they love that!!So, by now, I'm thinking I should name them. I first went with Donald and Daisy but that just didn't seem good enough. Then I came up with Donny and Marie! Loved it. So, Donny and Marie would come back about 2-3 times a day for a handout. I've even caught them out there at 7:00 am! And Donny is such a gentleman. He always lets Marie have her fill first.

After our big monsoon a week ago, the city let some of the water out of the creek so that it was kind of low. Because of this we had many other visitors--Great Egrets, Snowy Egrets, White Ibis and a Little Blue Heron. There was like a feeding frenzy going on and they were flying up and down the creek and from side to side. While I was out there watching, here came Donny and Marie fighting their way through the melee.A couple of days ago, I came home after a trip off island. As I got out of the car, I heard a commotion in the creek and Daisy came scooting up out of the water into the driveway. I had never seen them do this before. I wondered if she was so hungry she was now meeting me to beg or what. But, when I looked out into the water I saw Donny fending off a couple of other ducks--another male Mottled Duck and a Mallard. By the time I got my camera, Marie was back by Donny's side as Donny had successfully sent one of the males on his merry way and the other was at a distance looking on.
The next day, Donny was again agressively keeping the Mottled Suitor at bay. Donny loves his Marie and will defend and protect her to the end!

So, yesterday evening I went out on the deck and there is Mr. Suitor at a distance eyeing the food. Donny and Marie weren't there. The reason Mr. Suitor is at a distance was this guy! Apparently Mr. Turtle likes chow too. I guess Mr. Suitor didn't want to lose a leg by getting to close. Oh, and apparently another little turtle didn't want to lose any of his appendages either as he was lurking off to the side beside Mr. Suitor.Just then I noticed that someone else was watching all three. This didn't thrill me at all!!! I love this cat. He reminds me of my Shilo and comes to visit periodically but so help me if he goes after Donny, Marie or any of the other birdies out there, I will be very upset. So, that is the Saga of Donny and Marie--so far. Nesting season should be happening soon so I won't be at all surprised if someday they show up with a bunch of little Osmonds--oops I mean duckies. I'll keep you posted.