Back to square one

Today I observed both domestic ducks appear to be mating. Maybe the one was just mad at the other and climbed on top and held her/his head under water. I don't know. All I know for sure is that reproduction took place and the momma duck gets really upset when the adult ducks, domestic or otherwise, get near the ducklings. So I researched it online, and apparently adult ducks kill baby ducks. So now I'm wondering if that was the fate of last year's baby, and the first casualty of this year's brood. The momma duck was napping while her babies were foraging all over the place when there were no adult ducks in the pond.

But when an adult approached the pond, she became immediately alert and the ducklings swam to her.

Also today is the day of my husband's annual fish fry. I'm concerned for nesting Cactus Wrens because their nest box is right in the middle of the activity. It seems to be keeping the wrens from coming in and feeding their babies, despite the babies loud chirping. 

Kelly Bryan was at the fish fry and told me that Cactus Wrens aren't known to nest in nest boxes, so here is some documentation of that occurring, for what it's worth.

Eventually, the wren did come in and feed a couple of times with all the activity around, so hopefully the nesting attempt won't fail.