“The Lord God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them.” Genesis 2:19
What an interesting job Adam was given! The English language was not then in use, but in whatever language he spoke, it was his privilege to be the first to call a duck a duck.
The mallard is the wild duck from which most domestic ducks have been bred. The male (sometimes called a greenhead) is a beautiful bird with a glossy metallic green head and neck, yellow bill, narrow white collar and chestnut breast. The rest of its body is mostly grayish-brown with black central tail feathers that curl up.
Millions of mallards spend summers on the Canadian prairies and across the northern half of the United States, particularly in North Dakota where “pothole” ponds are ideal for nesting.
Females are mottled brown and, like the males, have orange legs and webbed feet. Their nests are well hidden, lined with down and feathers and are usually in tall grass at the edge of a pond or lake. The hatching of the six to fifteen olive-colored eggs and training of the ducklings are left to the mother. The ducklings can walk and swim expertly a few hours after hatching.
Mallards are the most common and noisiest of all ducks; the female’s quack is so loud it can be heard a mile away. In addition to acorns, wheat and other grains, their food includes water insects, frogs and fish. When feeding in shallow water, mallards have a “bottoms-up” position, feasting on underwater plants and insects.
They like to eat in concealed places in the daylight but raid grain fields at night, to the dismay of many farmers. Some areas are now planted especially for them so that they will not go into the farm fields until after crops have been harvested. Then they feed on the grain left on the ground.
Some mallards spend the entire winter along the coasts of Alaska and western Canada, but others migrate to Texas and California before winter, returning north in early spring. Their migrations are beautiful to see as their V-shaped groups, with heads and necks outstretched, move swiftly along high in the sky.
Do you think the Lord God, the Creator, cares about birds and their nests? A Bible verse tells us He certainly does: “If a bird’s nest chance to be before thee in the way ... thou shalt not take the [mother bird] with the young” (Deuteronomy 22:6). And if He cares about birds on their nests, doesn’t He care much more about you? The Bible answers this also: “Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you” (1 Peter 5:7). What a loving God we have! Have you ever thanked Him for His loving care over you?
ML-04/15/2012