Wood Duck Gallery

Wood ducks are so named because they are made primarily of wood. Or is it that they eat primarly wood? I can't remember. Or maybe it’s because, unlike most ducks, they nest in trees. Keep an eye out (and up) in the spring and you may see a mother dropping from her high nest and leading her brood towards the nearest water.

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 Crystal Springs 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

A male and female wood duck pair swim in green-colored water at Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge

Magical Morning

This morning got off to a beautiful start. I made it to Ridgefield near sunrise (no easy feat for a night owl like myself) and started the day watching some male ruddy ducks in breeding plumage. I then continued on the auto tour until I came across two pairs of wood ducks in a quiet channel in the small forested section of the loop. It was spring and the males were being a little territorial, chasing each other a bit, but it was pretty mild compared to most territorial displays.

Mother nature’s morning show wasn’t quite over, however. I spent quite a bit of time watching these beautiful ducks, and after a while a pair of beavers swam up and started grooming themselves on the far bank. A little later I’d watch male cinnamon teals chasing each other about and also see a flock of white pelicans, an unusual sight in the Pacific northwest.

All in all, a magical morning.