The pond at the school has a larger footprint than the building itself, and while it is water source to a variety of wildlife (blue herons, white egrets, whistling ducks, egyptian geese, crows, red-shouldered hawks, white-tailed deer),  mostly the frogs and turtles that live there full time.  

Every day we have different birds visit the pond, but over the last month a turf war has broken out between the Whistling Ducks and the Egyptian Geese.

Whistling Ducks vs Egyptian Geese

It started out innocently enough.  The Eqyptian Geese have been spotted on and off since November, and the Whistling Ducks have been spotted on and off since December.  Eventually, there came a day (March 31) that both sets of birds were at the pond at the same time, and it became clear that there was not enough water in the big pond for 4 water fowl.  We knew things were getting serious when the Geese started guarding the West side of the pond and the Ducks started guarding the East side of the pond. 

Then the Geese took flight and landed on the East side of the pond, agressively asserting their claim to the entire pond.  The Ducks crossed the street and walked South.  Eventually, they crossed the street again and attempted to swim on the South side of the pond, far away from the Geese.

Soon after the ducks began enjoying the South side of the pond, the Geese went off after them again and drove them out of the pond entirely!  The Ducks took flight, whistling in disgust, as the Geese honked in reply.  The Ducks circled the pond and then took off into the woods to perch on a tree (yes, ducks can sit on branches!).

Pond Wars Updates:

April 1, 2025: No geese or ducks today.  Just a White Egret.

April 4, 2025: The geese have decided to start walking around the street and neighboring yards.  They both stood in the middle of the road as we drove up, and we had to step out of the vehicle to shoo them off the street so we could get to school.

April 15, 2025: When we arrived, the Geese were sitting on the roof and a flock of Ducks flew overhead.  The Geese started honking angrily at them and forced the Ducks to go land in the woods.

Update: We will have baby Geese soon, apparently.  Spring is in the air!

April 22, 2025: No Geese this morning, but this afternoon there were 3 Ducks instead of the usual pair, and two of them appear to be squabbling over the third  (Black-Bellied Whistling Ducks mate for life).  We witnessed them chase each other across the pond several times, and it finally ended with one Duck standing in between the other two and apparently end their fight with no violence.  This is the first we've witnessed conflict resolution among the birds.  I'm impressed.

April 24, 2025: The last few days have been Goose-Free.  The Ducks are at the pond every morning and afternoon, along with the Herons and the Egrets.  The Ducks totally ignore the other birds in the pond, as they should.  When it was raining and the pond was overflowing into the ditch, the Egret and Heron were out together looking for frogs and crawfish.

Common Wildlife Sightings at Lake Creek Academy