Ducks in Maine seem to enjoy a pretty good life. But sometimes they encounter obstacles.
Occasionally, those obstacles include falling into the clutches of other creatures that live in the water.
Such was the case for an unsuspecting female mallard in the Bucksport area.
Mark Bamford had to do a double-take the other day when observing some ducks on his dock at Long Pond. One of them clearly had a problem.
Rather than sporting the usual two orange webbed feet, this duck was wearing a freshwater mussel on its left foot.
“I’m guessing that the clam was open and feeding when the duck stepped in it, and the clam closed on its foot,” said Bamford, who was eager to share the attached photos with Bangor Daily News readers.
Bamford said that the duck with the mussel sat on his dock with a group of five other ducks for several hours and was later swimming well behind the group.
The marauding mollusk apparently wanted to expand its horizons by hitching a ride with the duck. Of course, it likely didn’t consider the consequences of such an action, which undoubtedly included spending considerable time out of the water.
The phenomenon is not unheard of — check out this account from Science Minus Details — but I’m among those who have never seen anything quite like it in person.
Or, if you prefer an example from the saltwater, read here about how a quahog muckled onto one of the toes of a snowy egret. The bird was treated at a wildlife clinic, which removed the clam, splinted the toe and administered fluids and pain medication.
For the record, freshwater bivalves don’t eat ducks. Freshwater mussels are more keen on consuming phytoplankton, diatoms and other microorganisms, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Clearly, the Maine mussel bit off more than it could chew. Its fate, and that of the duck, are not known.
Bamford later saw another group of six ducks swimming no problem, though he wasn’t sure if it was the same six he had seen over the weekend.
“If it lost the clam, then it’s probably swimming along with the others,” he said.
BDN writer Ethan Genter contributed to this report.
