Wood Ducks
Wood Ducks live
year-round in Northern Virginia, but they may
change locations according to food sources,
water levels, and good cover.
Wood ducks are
throughout Virginia's swamps and wetlands. They
are secretive birds that often seek areas of
flooded timber and woody vegetation.
Most wood ducks
hatched and raised in Virginia migrate south to
the Carolinas, Georgia and Alabama. A few birds
will remain in Virginia during mild winters. The
lack of suitable nest cavities will affect
distribution of breeding wood ducks in an area.
A combination of
downed timber, woody and herbaceous emergent
plants, interspersed with small openings of
surface water, provide ideal year-round habitat.
Vegetative cover should always exceed 50% of the
surface water area. Loafing sites are required
throughout the area for preening and sunning.
The sites should be open for good visibility,
surrounded by water and near escape cover. A
minimum of 10-15 sites per surface acre is
needed. Logs, stumps, muskrat houses, and
tussocks are good examples of loafing sites.
Competition for available cavities, predation,
and food availability will limit wood duck
production.
Wood
Ducks are shy and stay hidden among
cover
most of the day. Water plants used as cover
include: cattails, sedges, reeds, Yellow Pond
Lily, Pickerelweed, and Lizard's Tail. Trees,
vines, and shrubs along the water's edge also
provide good cover, such as: Black Willow,
Silver Maple, American Sycamore, White Oak,
Sassafras, Poison Ivy, Highbush Blueberry, and
Wild Grape.
Predators
of Wood Ducks
include: owls, Red Fox, Raccoon, Common Snapping
Turtle, large fish, snakes, and squirrels. They
are most vulnerable when they are young. Eggs
may be destroyed by woodpeckers or starlings.
Several wood duck
nest box designs and styles are available today.
The most important items to remember when
setting-up nest boxes are:
-
all nest boxes
should be placed on posts or trees and
MUST have predator guards installed.
Cone-shaped guards fashioned from sheet
metal are acceptable. Placing 6" PVC pipe
over the post also works well. Make sure any
small openings around the guards and/or
pipes are completely blocked off to prevent
snake predation.
-
nest boxes may
be placed at a density of one box per acre
of quality habitat.
-
nest boxes
should be located over or very near water.
-
locate nest
boxes within or adjacent to quality brood
habitat.
-
nest boxes
MUST have "fresh" wood chips or wood
shavings placed in every box each year.
Discard old nest material and replace with
new material before February 1st each year.
Do not use hay, straw or sawdust.
|
