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Posted by Anne on 22:22:35 04/25/06
A couple of mating pairs have taken to hanging out in the recessed, mulch-filled alcove between my villa and the one next door. At first we thought the female was nesting, but then there weren't any eggs. The female and her apparent mate seem to come at the same time each day, from about 7am through the mid-morning. Then they'd leave and go unseen the rest of the day. Strangely, some days the indentation where the female rested was covered up with mulch. Other days it seemed more like a nest again. Finally, this morning there was an egg there, but only one and that seemed strange. An hour later I came out to find a most peculiar sight. Her mate was standing watch while another male climbed on his partner while she was nesting that one egg. The new male busied himself with all manner of biting and stomping and other duckish mating activity, and by afternoon, they were all gone, leaving the egg completely exposed. What's up with this situation. I know Muscovy are polygamous, but why only one egg? And what's up with leaving the egg alone? Whatever is happening at my house, it is a neat science/animal lesson for my little daughter, but I don't quite understand things well enough to explain it all to her correctly.
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