The elusive Cape shoveler update!
Just look at that beak! Our lone Cape shoveler duckling was graduated outside onto a grassy paddock at the beginning of last week. In just 9 days the whole group have started to shed their down and in their place feather quills are already pushing through.
This is the teenage stage for a young bird, where they struggle with the weight of their own limbs as the blood flowing through their feathers adds to the general load! At this age we graduate them to a lower protein level in their feed pellets in order to help slow down their growth as their muscles acclimatise. They couple this change with lots of lazy hours spent at the side of the pond, preening oil from their preening gland into their new feathers to keep them looking spick and span.
We haven't yet identified formally the sex of the shoveler, so i'm going to go out on a limb and declare that I think her female due to the proportions and colour development of her bill. I believe that a male's beak would if anything be even bigger! Visually guessing the sex of ducklings is one of my favourite past times during the season... Good luck girl!
