Wood Ducks at Crystal Springs

Male wood duck swimming in green-colored water at Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden

It Worked, Grandma, It Worked

My grandparents had a cabin next to a small lake where we'd go swimming and canoeing. One spring when I was a young boy, Grandma believed wood ducks were nesting in the box out front and thought she saw one of the parents fly up to the nest. She called me over to the table in front of the large picture window and we waited to see if it would come back out again.

We waited. And waited. And waited.

The duck never showed, but her love for them did, as did her desire to pass on that love to me.

Green and Yellow

I was a little crestfallen when I downloaded this picture to my computer and saw the beautiful picture marred by the out-of-focus white feather floating in the water. I could edit it out of course, and I might yet add an additional version like that, but on the other hand maybe not everything needs to be perfect.

Fall Swim

One of the advantages of shooting at the Garden is that from some vantage points the water is colored by the reflection of the trees. This means green water much of the year, but during the fall you can get some lovely yellow or orange water. With woodies, practically any color reflection you choose will match a part of the duck’s coloration.

A wood duck drake swims past a fallen log at sunset at Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden

A wood duck drake swims in orange-colored water at sunset at Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden

A female wood duck drinks from the water as she swims amidst the fall colors at Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden in Portland, Oregon

The Ugly Duckling?

Ducks are one of the few birds that are cute when they’re little, most birds are scrawny-looking hatchlings that only a mother could love. Ducklings are cute and fuzzy but as they age a few months, they hit that awkward stage where they aren’t quite cute ducklings but not quite beautiful adults. The little wood duck on the left is rapidly leaving the cute phase behind and heading headlong into the awkard phase, the adult on the right shows the promise of what it is to come (for the male ducklings at least).

Wood duck duckling at Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden

Male wood duck at Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden

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