Making better ducks

 People love to feed the ducks, as happens every day where
the Jacksonville Branch of Spring Creek enters Washington Park. People don’t
love ducks, however, judgig by what they feed these animals.

The usual gift is bread, but Britain’s Canal and River
Trust warns that white bread in particular is no better for ducks than it is for kids. Ducklings that are fed on bread become malnourished,
and what they don’t eat fouls the water in the lagoon.

If you wish to feed the ducks – as distinct from
giving them something to eat – leave the bread on the table back home. The Canal
and River Trust recommends that people instead feed ducks defrosted frozen peas, sweet corn, cut grapes, oats,
barley, rice or vegetable trimmings. That’s the way to be kind to your web-footed
friends. 

This article appears in Mar 19-25, 2015.