rjennion's Identifications

Warm, passing rain squalls, gusting South-Westerly wind, around 28 degrees Celsius.

I'd been watching the reeds (bull rushes, cumbungi) along the Southern bank closely for just over a month as 3 female BBD's looked to be nesting there, 2 darker females and a lighter female. The lighter female seemed to leave which left the 2 darker females however sightings got infrequent. This was expected as the female lays eggs inside a cocoon-like nest and spends around 28 days to incubate, rarely leaving the nest and losing weight in the process. It was now just over that month period and, if there were eggs, hatching should be about now. Having watched the BBD's closely for so long, I knew as a diving duck where young self feed by diving, the mother would bring them off the nest later in the morning when it was warmer and they wouldn't chill, so I was spending long periods from this time watching through binoculars......

Just after 12pm, about 1.5 metres left of the power pole behind the reeds on the Southern bank, right at the front edge of the reeds, a dark shape slowly moved forward, could this be it?? Definitely a female BBD, sitting, hunched, was that some tiny dark shapes low to the water clustered behind her?? I was breathless, heart racing. The female BBD slowly moved forward, the tiny shapes moving with her, a little left and right.... No! To her left a pair of Coots had piled reeds on top of the broken reed stems that had been trampled by an Australasian Swamphen, stamping down the reeds and tearing out the white hearts to eat, a nice nest platform. The Coots were dipping to feed in the South-Western corner, the female BBD moved to the front of the nest, inspecting it, the tiny shapes clustered behind. I tried to steady my shaking hands, exhale, hold.... was that 3 or 4 BBDlings? Definitely Blue-billed Ducklings! The mother BBD climbed up the front of then nest, the tiny BBDlings clambering up after, snuggling under their mother who sat wide, wings slightly open to cover her new brood, facing towards the reeds.

The Coot pair had seen the intrusion, the now irate pair ran-flew across the lake from the South-West corner to do battle for the nest, one circling out in front past the nest and looping back in from the left, the other paddling in quickly, a few metres right. The mother BBD left the nest and paddled out to the Coot 3 metres out on her left, hunched down, neck stretching forward, bill open, exposing the few tiny shapes on the nest - the Coots looked to have seen the tiny BBDlings clustered and immediately retreated without a fight. There seems to be a rule with the lake birds that you don't mess with another bird with young, and they didn't. It's not like the Coots to do that however it's the same with the Moorhens they hate - see them with chicks, leave them alone. All the lake birds obey that rule. The new mother BBD paddled back to the new nest, climbing up and nestled down.

I raced to swap the binoculars for the camera for some long distance shots - only a 300mm lens, insufficient for the pics over 100 metres away but here they are. The first time on the lake for these newly hatched BBDlings, the latest generation of multiple BBD's born on Lake Knox, Knoxfield Victoria, over previous years.

Over under the Swamp Gum on the western bank, the single male BBD on the lake had noticed the movement and paddled over. The mother opening her bill in dissatisfaction as he bobbed his head to mate, paddling closer. Also a pic of the new nest position, around 1 metre left of the power pole behind the reeds, the mother BBD facing South, bill open as the male paddles in. A rain squall moved in from the south-west with strong wind and heavy rain and I took cover, under the trees overhanging the fence to the left of the viewing area. After several minutes it relented to light rain and I stepped back with binoculars to watch the nest, too wet for the camera. The new mother brought the maybe 3 or 4 BBDlings off the nest and paddled a metre left, the tiny shapes never straying from the edge of the reeds, sticking behind their mother. The male BBD paddled in from further left and the mother paddled at him, head stretched low and forward, bill open and he backed off. The tiny shapes concertinaed out to her - 1, 2, 3, 4 5!! 5 new BBDlings!! Their first day on the lake! She paddled back right and the obedient shapes concertinaed after her, gathering close behind, not straying from the security of the edge of the reeds. The light rain passed and I could switch back from binoculars to camera.

Over the next few hours, the mother BBD brought her tiny shapes out on the lake, 5 of them, no more than 2 metres either side of the new nest 5 times. No, they're not alien space craft, it's past the limit of my camera and 300mm lens, around 100 metres away. They're the best pics I have of the new, tiny five BBDlings. Back on the nest, well a brief delay on the water before climbing back up and nestling under their mother.

No rush to get pics, the BBDlings will be there, growing quickly, for at least the next 6 months. The mother will raise them until they're independent, possibly leaving the lake in 1 to 2 months after so long cooped up on the nest keeping the eggs warm, then teaching her ducklings to feed and fend for themselves.