Urban Duck Families Under Pressure: Feeding, Aggression, Orphaned Ducklings, and Survival in a Crowded River Habitat

 

On June 24, 2025, I recorded another long field observation of wild Eastern Spot-billed Duck families in an urban river and pond system. This was not a single dramatic event, but rather a dense day of encounters: families overlapping, ducklings disappearing, older juveniles surviving, mothers defending their young, and abandoned ducklings living alone.

This article is based on my own continuous video record. I am not a professional ornithologist, and the interpretations here should be read as field observations by a long-term amateur observer. However, I have been recording these duck families almost every day, keeping the raw footage as time-stamped evidence. Because each day’s footage remains archived, it becomes possible to compare families across dates and follow changes that would be difficult to notice from a single visit.

Observed species

- カルガモ / Eastern Spot-billed Duck / Anas zonorhyncha  

  The main subject of this record. Multiple mothers and duckling groups were observed, including large surviving broods, reduced broods, and abandoned juveniles.

- コサギ / Little Egret / Egretta garzetta  

  A small white heron seen approaching a duck family. The mother duck appeared to react defensively, and the egret turned away.

- カワセミ / Common Kingfisher / Alcedo atthis  

  A juvenile kingfisher was observed resting quietly. Its presence shows the variety of river wildlife sharing the same habitat.

- バン / Common Moorhen / Gallinula chloropus  

  A young moorhen, about 35 days old, was recorded. This species also breeds in waterside vegetation.

- コイ / Common Carp / Cyprinus carpio  

  Carp spawning behavior was observed. This seemed to occur under specific water conditions, not simply during the hottest period.

- アオサギ / Grey Heron / Ardea cinerea  

  Several Grey Herons were seen feeding in rice fields. Seeing multiple individuals together was notable in this area.

- カワウ / Great Cormorant / Phalacrocorax carbo  

  A cormorant suddenly emerged near the ducklings, startling an abandoned juvenile.

- イワツバメ / Asian House Martin / Delichon dasypus  

  I checked a former nesting area, but there did not appear to be active nesting this year.

Main observation

One of the most striking themes of the day was contrast.

Some duck families had lost all their ducklings. One mother, identified as Vf, appeared alone in the pond. Since her ducklings had not been seen the previous day either, this strongly suggested that the brood may have been lost. I cannot prove the exact cause from this record alone, but the disappearance fits the broader pattern of high duckling mortality seen in this area.

At the same time, Af13-46 was still present: a large family of thirteen juveniles, now 46 days old. This mother had often left her ducklings alone during the early period, which once felt risky. Yet by this date the young birds were large, vocal, and much more stable. Their voices had also changed noticeably compared with younger ducklings around 38 days old. Seeing thirteen juveniles together at this stage gave a very different feeling from watching newly hatched ducklings.

Nearby, Bf abandoned duckling 1, now 43 days old, was also still alive. This bird has grown without a mother since early in life. The contrast between Af13, a large family still accompanied by their mother, and Bf abandoned 1, a single juvenile surviving alone, was one of the most powerful scenes of the day. Both belonged to the earliest families of the season, yet their paths were completely different.

Aggression and feeding pressure

Another important observation involved Yf3-21. This family had moved downstream the previous day, but was found upstream again, suggesting that the earlier movement may not have been a true relocation.

During feeding activity caused by people, the Yf ducklings were attacked by other ducks, and the mother was persistently chased by a male. In my experience, these conflicts often become most visible after feeding ends. While food is actively being thrown, many ducks focus on the food itself. Afterward, however, the increased density of birds may lead to aggression around mothers and ducklings.

This is one reason feeding can be difficult to evaluate from a casual human perspective. A person throwing bread may think, “They are only eating peacefully.” But the consequences may appear later, when the birds remain crowded together. In the same general area, Uf1 had already lost more ducklings and was down to a single chick. I cannot state the cause with certainty, but the repeated aggression and crowding in this shallow area are concerning.

Family overlap and habitat crowding

Many families were encountered on the same day: Uf1-14, Ef6-38, Df5-38, Yf3-21, Pf2-23, Ff6-38, Gf7-40, Sf9, Cf3-43, Lf4-25, Af13-46, Mf1-26, Bf abandoned 1-43, Zf1-10, Hf2-34, and Df abandoned 4-38.

The river seemed increasingly crowded. Some families were moving into areas used by others. Sf9 had recently been sleeping in the same place every day. Df5 was expanding from downstream, while Sf9 and other families occupied nearby zones. Ff6 and Gf7 were especially difficult to distinguish because some Gf ducklings had mixed into Ff’s group.

Such overlap creates repeated encounters: mothers detour, ducklings mix temporarily, juveniles are threatened, and abandoned ducklings must avoid families that still have mothers. This day’s footage was especially rich in these family-to-family interactions.

A new family appears

A new small family, Zf1-10, was also found: one mother with one small duckling. Soon after, the mother was apparently attacked or chased by another duck, and the duckling became isolated. The chick called alone for a while, but the mother eventually returned and they reunited.

This short separation was a reminder that even a single surviving duckling must face many risks: attacks from other ducks, temporary loss of the mother, predators, and habitat disturbance.

A rare reunion with Hf

Farther downstream, I found Hf2-34, a family I had not seen since May 27. The mother had distinctive feather markings, which made identification possible even after about a month. One duckling had been lost since the previous record. This family was especially memorable because it had connections with several earlier events, including mixed ducklings and conflicts involving other families.

Finding them again was valuable as long-term evidence. Without daily or near-daily records, such a reappearance might look like an unrelated family.

Reflection

This day showed the wide range of outcomes in Eastern Spot-billed Duck parenting.

One mother may lose all her ducklings.  

Another may raise thirteen young to a large and stable size.  

One abandoned duckling may survive alone for more than forty days.  

A new mother may already be struggling with only one chick.  

These records do not provide controlled scientific proof, but they do provide continuous, date-linked evidence from the same habitat. Over time, patterns become visible: feeding-related crowding, repeated aggression, family displacement, duckling mixing, and the different survival paths of each brood.

For me, this was a day of both shock and reflection. The probable loss of Vf’s ducklings was painful, while the sight of Af13 and Bf abandoned 1 living side by side felt almost symbolic. In the same river, under the same urban conditions, one family remained large and protected, while another young duck had grown up alone.

This is why I continue to record the raw footage. Each day may look ordinary at first, but when connected across dates, it becomes part of a larger record of survival, parenting, pressure, and adaptation in urban wildlife.