Drama at Duck Manor

Yesterday was a high drama day at Duck Manor.
Clearly there aren't enough houses for the number of female ducks and it is causing some fights.

Just after the kids left for school, I heard a lot of squawking on the Duck TV.  I didn't see anything unusual on the monitor, so I looked outside and I saw another female on top of the duck house.
Was Skyler inside protecting her territory or was she outside trying to scare away the intruder?

(It's not uncommon for females to have a "compound nest" - see last year's blog for more.  But I imagine it's pretty uncommon to get to watch the drama unfold.  It isn't a happy space-sharing!)

I got out my camera and snapped a picture of the extra mama duck on top. Then I took a video so I could share what was happening.  A few minutes later the extra mama duck was inside the house and they were in a pecking fight for almost 15 minutes.  This video is just a short portion of that - the end where someone actually won and chased the loser out.   I, of course, am hoping Skyler won out and chased the home invader out - but I have no way to tell.

The last bit of the drama occurred when the loser returned with her male. (Can you believe that?) They sat on top and loudly tried to intimidate whoever was inside for quite a while.  Eventually the female went back in, but she was quickly kicked out this time.  For several hours after that the pair just swam back and forth in front of the duck house, just waiting I imagine. The female inside stayed put.

By the afternoon, the female was ready to leave.  I watched her just sit in the doorway looking out forever before she decided it was safe to exit.   I wish I knew who won.

After she left I went down to count the eggs.  (If I know when she is done laying, I'll know when to watch for them to hatch.)  There were 11 eggs, which is consistent with one a day - meaning that both ducks did not lay an egg in the nest.  We'll have to see how this plays out!