This story is about a pair of Ring-necked Ducks who attempted to breed in my Atlas Square, 17TNH87 (Mount Hope). I learned later from Rob Dobos (Regional Coordinator for Region 5 – Hamilton) that this species has not been reported as breeding in the Hamilton Region ever before! So, I took a few birder friends to see this pair of ducks as part of my confirmation for the Atlas. Once such early visit was with my friend, Peter Thoem.

The behavior of these Ring-necked Ducks led Peter and I to agree that the male and female were behaving as a breeding pair. They were searching for a nest site along the grassy shore of a small pond in the country, carefully exploring one opening in the shoreline vegetation after another. And a few days later, I found them at what looked like a perfect nesting spot underneath some trees at the end of a long pond. The nest location was as far from the dirt roadway as they could be, but we were able to watch safely from the roadway using a telescope.

I read up about this species’ reproductive behavior, and from a good distance with a telescope, I watched them create a well concealed nest under branches that hung thickly over the water surface. I kept track of the timing and realized they must be ready to lay eggs soon.

Each time I arrived, this pair was typically out in the open, casually swimming and feeding on the pond. At the sight of my car though, they quickly swam towards the far end of the pond and stayed close to their chosen nest site.

This species of duck works for some days to make their nest and then the female lays her eggs while the male is still present. More and more often it was only the male I’d see on the pond swimming about, but then one day, after all of the eggs were laid, I knew that the male would leave…and he did. He just disappeared and left the female to care for the eggs and raise the young on her own.

After the male was gone, I’d see the female nervously swimming about the pond alone. I couldn’t help but worry about her and her clutch of unborn ducklings. I always kept my distance from the nest as I didn’t want to disrupt this new breeder to our area.

I’d often see the female out feeding and doing a lot of preening. I’ve noticed that birds that have been incubating eggs seem to preen often and very thoroughly. Their feathers must get matted from sitting on eggs for long periods in the heat. This mother never wandered far from her clutch. Each time I showed up, she’d swim directly to her nest and settle on the eggs, hidden in the shade under the thick canopy of arching branches.

Over the next month, I watched her quietly for hours, hoping to get confirmation that chicks had finally hatched. I visited every two or three days during this month just so I wouldn’t miss upgrading my confirmed breeding evidence for this potential ‘new Hamilton breeding species.’ She was on the nest most of the next three weeks, only venturing out to feed and/or preen. I was hopeful that ducklings would appear soon but alas, they never materialized.

During the fourth week, I started to see the mother duck out more often swimming and preening. I couldn’t see any young birds but thought that at the distance between us, they could be hidden by the shoreline grasses at a very young age. Or maybe they kept out of sight in a small water channel that was near the nest site? Maybe it was just difficult for me to see them?

For a week or two, I searched in vain. The ducklings should be following their mother around the pond to feed within days of hatching and this female duck was clearly sitting on a nest for three weeks incubating eggs. Very sadly though, it became evident that the nest had failed to produce any offspring and after swimming about the pond alone for some weeks, the female finally flew away.

The landowners were also keeping an eye out for young on the pond, and they strongly suspect that the eggs were predated by one of the many predators that frequent their property – coyotes, raccoons, snakes or rodents perhaps. To date, Ring-necked Ducks haven’t returned to this property to breed, and maybe that’s best if there are too many predators to allow for successful reproduction.

I kept wondering how nature’s design for the male Ring-necked Duck to abandon its incubating partner would benefit the survival of their offspring. Perhaps the colourful male attracts even more predators to the nest site? In reality, the male would not be equipped to protect the eggs against so many predators anyway. It just didn’t seem to make sense because wouldn’t two parent ducks offer more protection than one? Perhaps not.

In the end I was disappointed, but my evidence still confirms that this species at least attempted to breed in the Hamilton Region and that is significant in itself. I take pleasure in knowing that maybe they’ll return in the future and have better success elsewhere in the region. In fact, in 2023 there was a pair of Ring-necked Ducks in a quarry pond in Flamborough but I’m not sure how their story ended.

So, my confirmed breeding evidence suggests that this duck species could possibly start reproducing in the Hamilton Region one day, and we could help them by protecting more wetland habitats around our city. If we protect more of our remaining wetlands, then ducks will have somewhere to breed and people will have cleaner water to drink and a more reliable supply of water as well. The ducks and Hamilton residents both need these wetlands to survive.