I’m forever blowing bubbles…..
Today was another dreary day, of rotten light, too much tedious stuff to do, and when I finally made it to the river, still no gulls. Among the Mute Swans and feral and Canada Geese, it was a relief to finally see a flash of colour when a couple of male Mallards showed up.
This individual attracted my attention because at first sight he appeared to be blowing bubbles for fun, but I think what he was actually doing was feeding, by repeatedly dipping into the river – exhaling as he did so – and coming up with a bill full of water that he then allowed to dribble back out of his mouth. Mallards are dabbling, as opposed to diving ducks, and like other dabblers (or ‘puddleducks’) their bills are lined with small comb-like structures called lamellae, which act as filters – trapping edible material such as seeds, invertebrates and even small fish within the bill, while allowing water and sediment to escape.
R: L2, C3, D3.
