Distant relatives

If I see a Mandarin Duck and I have a camera, chances are I'll end up taking a photo. I know they aren't native to the UK but the males look so impressive in their full colour, and stand out so well against the drab grey of London. This one, however was paired up with an unusual friend.

The other bird is a Wood Duck. I spotted this pair of males in St James' Park. The Mandarin was bossy, but the Wood Duck seemed to tolerate his company despite getting pecked at every so often. I like that the Mandarin is puffing his chest out, I assume as a display of dominance over the Wood Duck. I didn't see any other Wood Ducks around, maybe it was lonely.

The two species are closely related to each other, but Mandarins are native to East Asia whereas Wood Ducks are native to North America. In the wild they would never meet, it just took a few thousand miles and a London park for them to get together.


Makes a nice change from all the black & white photos. (I do like my b&w's)