Celebrating Spring Ducklings Chicks | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Nature Animals

Celebrating Spring With Ducklings And Gallinule Chicks

Spring brings new life with it.

26
Common Gallinule and Chicks
Corrinne Brubaker

One of my favorite things about spring is seeing baby animals everywhere. Ducklings and goslings are a common sight this time of year that many people enjoy. A few weeks ago, I spotted my first mallard ducklings this year. The first time I saw them, they were so tiny and huddled next to their mom. They moved as one, never leaving their mother's side. If you listened closely, you could hear their tiny chirps.

Every day they would venture a little further from their mother. They began running around, nibbling on the grass, and nibbling on aquatic plants as they swam. Every day they became more independent.

One day as I was doing my homework at the park and sitting on a picnic bench in the pavilion, I saw the ducklings, about ten of them, run under my bench. They didn't seem to mind me as they ran past, towards the water, chirping excitedly. They had grown a lot since I had last seen them and now they weren't afraid to explore on their own, as long as mother was still in sight. I've seen many ducklings, I often see more than one family every year, but I don't think I had ever been so close to them. I smiled as I watched them excitedly run past, chirping away.

DucklingsDucklings Corrinne Brubaker

They are unmistakable birds when you know what you're looking for. And although they are common in Florida, I never saw this bird when I was growing up in Illinois, so I enjoy seeing them now. In addition to their unique look, they have an unmistakable honking noise that reminds me of a squeaky toy, the kind you get for your dog. They randomly squeak and honk when they feel like it, and they are loud, making sure they are heard.

I regularly see adult common gallinules, nearly every time I visit one of the nearby lakes. But I had never seen a gallinule chick. I wondered what they looked like. Well, on Easter Sunday I saw my first gallinule chicks. We were at a lake, sitting on a bench and watching birds when I noticed a very small black thing next to the gallinule. It moved right along with it staying close. I squinted to see it, and after watching for a few minutes, I realized it was, in fact, a gallinule chick. It was so tiny and black. I looked closer, and there had to be at least three babies. They would stay very close to their parents or mostly hidden in the grasses at the water's edge.

Later, I was able to get a better look at the young gallinule family since they came closer to the shore. The babies followed their parents back and forth. The parents fed on aquatic plants constantly then would regurgitate it for their chicks. It was constant work feeding them. I could now get a better look at the chicks, and they looked just like mini gallinules they had little red heads and red beaks.

I enjoyed watching these little chicks. Look closely, and you'll discover there is new life everywhere.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
ross geller
YouTube

As college students, we are all familiar with the horror show that is course registration week. Whether you are an incoming freshman or selecting classes for your last semester, I am certain that you can relate to how traumatic this can be.

1. When course schedules are released and you have a conflict between two required classes.

Bonus points if it is more than two.

Keep Reading...Show less
friends

Whether you're commuting or dorming, your first year of college is a huge adjustment. The transition from living with parents to being on my own was an experience I couldn't have even imagined- both a good and a bad thing. Here's a personal archive of a few of the things I learned after going away for the first time.

Keep Reading...Show less
Featured

Economic Benefits of Higher Wages

Nobody deserves to be living in poverty.

300256
Illistrated image of people crowded with banners to support a cause
StableDiffusion

Raising the minimum wage to a livable wage would not only benefit workers and their families, it would also have positive impacts on the economy and society. Studies have shown that by increasing the minimum wage, poverty and inequality can be reduced by enabling workers to meet their basic needs and reducing income disparities.

I come from a low-income family. A family, like many others in the United States, which has lived paycheck to paycheck. My family and other families in my community have been trying to make ends meet by living on the minimum wage. We are proof that it doesn't work.

Keep Reading...Show less
blank paper
Allena Tapia

As an English Major in college, I have a lot of writing and especially creative writing pieces that I work on throughout the semester and sometimes, I'll find it hard to get the motivation to type a few pages and the thought process that goes behind it. These are eleven thoughts that I have as a writer while writing my stories.

Keep Reading...Show less
April Ludgate

Every college student knows and understands the struggle of forcing themselves to continue to care about school. Between the piles of homework, the hours of studying and the painfully long lectures, the desire to dropout is something that is constantly weighing on each and every one of us, but the glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel helps to keep us motivated. While we are somehow managing to stay enrolled and (semi) alert, that does not mean that our inner-demons aren't telling us otherwise, and who is better to explain inner-demons than the beloved April Ludgate herself? Because of her dark-spirit and lack of filter, April has successfully been able to describe the emotional roller-coaster that is college on at least 13 different occasions and here they are.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments