Ode to a Duck

duck
T'was the last week of summer
And, down by the lake,
We hear the sad quack
Of a hungry old drake.
grebe
The grebes and the tufted ducks
Dabble and dive
But our poor drake is struggling
Just to survive.
juvenile grebe
The foraging moorhen
Has plenty of luck,
But that doesn't extend
To the desolate duck.
goose
In the woods, the grey squirrels
Eat beech-nuts galore,
But our poor drake is starving
Down here on the shore.
grebe and duck

I know what you’re thinking:
‘I’ll give him some bread!’ –
But just one mouldy bread crust
Can leave a duck dead.

ducks
This ode to a duck
Might not be the best,
But what were you expecting? -
I'm not Colin West!
duck

Cartoon ducks drawn at Newmillerdam this morning. We didn’t see any drake mallards in breeding plumage, so my guess is that they’re all in eclipse plumage, and we’ll see their true colours appear in the autumn.