Paradise Shelduck (2)

We saw a lovely family of Paradise Shelducks near a pond at Invermay Research Campus on Sunday, 26 November. As soon as we stopped the car, the parents must have told the ducklings to run for the water because they all instantly ran for the pond!

Invermay is an agricultural research centre on the outskirts of Dunedin City, New Zealand.

As explained in yesterday’s post, Paradise Shelduck (1), these shelducks are endemic to New Zealand and commonly seen. Tadorna variegata

Click on any of the images below for a larger size version.

The duck with the white head is the female. The male duck is dark and harder to see.

Footbridge over the pond and water lilies

Mother duck on the pond with her ducklings.

Father duck is standing on the far bank on top of the rocky edge, quietly keeping watch

The scene was peaceful but the mother duck was anything but, keeping up a constant stream of shrill alarm calls while we were present.

The large patch of water lilies

Just for reference, here’s a closer view of a female Paradise Shelduck…

This photo taken by Nigel

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Text and photos by Exploring Colour (2017) unless otherwise attributed