Usually, I see these ducks in Florida, but the last few years they have been seen more frequently in Wisconsin. I have seen them 3 of the last 5 years in Milwaukee County. Today while I was out watching shorebirds, I heard there were 4 seen in Oak Creek. Surprisingly enough, they showed up at the same residence as one did, back in 2021! What are the odds of that??? The homeowner gave me permission to go into his backyard and photograph them. I walked around to the backyard and didn’t see them at first. I was walking very slowly and being cautious as to not scare them. Finally, I found them down by the pond, staring at me. Here, they were watching me the whole time! They were near a couple of geese with some fledglings. A Wild Turkey was up near the feeders and when it ran towards the water it scared the birds and ducks. They flew out about 50′ in the water, so I sat down on the grass and waited. About 5 minutes later they slowly swam back to the shoreline. By now it was raining, and conditions were pretty bad for photography. I waited another few minutes and they were right on the edge of the shoreline feeding in the shallow water. However, there was a bench blocking my view, as well as the goose family. They seemed like they were content in that spot and if I moved, they probably would have swum out. Also, I figured the rain wasn’t going to stop, so I left. Photos below are from the late morning, 4/28/24. A big thank you to the homeowner Eric M.! Enjoy!
