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Is this our resident Mandarin duck?

Posted: Jun 06 9:40 pm
by Leeny
Seen today at Burnaby Lake.
It looks like a Mandarin duck, possibly during some stage of molting. Or is it a juvenile? Is this Trevor, the local celebrity Mandarin duck? It doesn't look like other pictures of him - missing the sails on his back and the more distinct colours on top of his head. Almost certainly the same duck in both shots:

ImageMandarin duck by Leenyxa, on Flickr

ImageMandarin duck 2 by Leenyxa, on Flickr

Re: Is this our resident Mandarin duck?

Posted: Jun 06 11:00 pm
by Leeny
I think I finally found an answer to my question in this comment:
viewtopic.php?t=16570#p89770

A. Yes, it appears to be a stage of molting. Feel free to delete my previous question!

Re: Is this our resident Mandarin duck?

Posted: Jun 07 12:48 pm
by jewill
Hi Leeny,
Yes, that’s our somewhat famous Trevor, the Mandarin Duck. Thanks for posting the pictures of him, even though he’s looking rather haggard. I’ve been worried about him because I haven’t seen him the last several times I’ve been to Piper Spit. He’s not always reported on eBird because he’s not a native species and I know he likes to hide when he’s molting. It will be the end of September or early October before he’s back to his magnificent self.

Re: Is this our resident Mandarin duck?

Posted: Jun 08 10:56 pm
by Leeny
Hi Judy,
Thanks for filling me in! I actually reported him on eBird, but it didn't show up with the rest of my list...possibly because I only have the North America data pack installed? He's probably being shy like you said. I visited on a rainy evening and only one other person was around.

Re: Is this our resident Mandarin duck?

Posted: Feb 01 3:46 pm
by Onyxdragun
I don't typically bring threads back from the dead but.....

In South Surrey there is a farm, Gabriel Farms (aka Hazelmere Pumpkin Patch) anyway, Farmer Shari had hatched 2 Mandarin ducks a while back. She thinks that the Mandarin duck people see in Burnaby is actually one of the two she hatched. The other one has stayed on her farm ever since.

Re: Is this our resident Mandarin duck?

Posted: Feb 01 5:20 pm
by jewill
That actually makes sense. Ever since he appeared, almost 4 years ago now, there has been lots of speculation as to how he ended up at Piper Spit. Was he dumped there by some uncaring person who had him as a pet and didn’t want him anymore? Was he a stow-away on a freighter that had crossed the Pacific (if so, then the crew must have fed him because I think it takes 3 weeks or more to make the crossing)? Or was he an escapee from a hobby farm?
Well it looks like #3 is the winner! I’m glad to finally have an answer. He seems to be doing well - avoiding potential predators, he has a girlfriend (a Wood Duck) and both of them defend each other from other ducks (stay away from my man/woman!), and he gets lots of free food from all of the visitors to the park.
Thanks for solving the mystery Onyxdragun.

Added: She didn't happen to say if she also had 3 Pekin Ducks did she? They appeared at Piper Spit around 6 months after the Mandarin. They lasted less than a year - 1 confirmed as having been eaten by a wild mink, the other 2 unknown outcome (probably also succumbed to a predator).
Just wondering.

Re: Is this our resident Mandarin duck?

Posted: Feb 01 7:41 pm
by Onyxdragun
Next time I see her I'll ask.

I know she and another local farmer trade eggs of various ducks/chickens and see if they can hatch them. Sometimes they are successful, sometimes not.