Behold the four stooges! These adorable little troublemakers arrived at our San Francisco Bay wildlife center this week. They are diving ducks called Hooded Mergansers (affectionately known as “Hoodies”). As cavity nesters, the babies instinctually look upward and have already caused shenanigans at the center, having literally leaped up at the sheet covering their pen until they found a weak spot and escaped. We found them running around the floor of our baby unit after lunch this week!
These babies are also unusual in that they will not eat thawed fish, preferring food that is still moving. This means we have to buy minnows every few days from local pet stores to keep up with their appetites! Last time we raised ducklings like this, it cost us more than $3,200 just for fish! Please make a donation of $25 or more to support our Hooded Merganser food fund and we’ll send you a special link to a video of them exploring their enclosure and looking for an escape!! Please write “Hoodie” in the comments section so we know where to direct the funds.
Check them out on the BirdCam, too!
You can see what they will look like as adults, and learn lots more about this type of diving duck from our friends at Audubon: http://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/hooded-merganser.
Photo by Cheryl Reynolds
I have found myself with a hoodie chick. Please advise? Email me pelase!