Nature

We've known them from childhood.

Charming, funny birds that float in the tub.

But ducks are full of surprises.

Older than whales,

they were one of the first creatures to return from land to the sea.

Supremely adaptable,

they have conquered every kind of water.

Intensely social,

they have rituals that reach back millions of years.

Proven survivors,

they're a perfect blend of wings,

and wind,

and water.

Introducing ducks,

a colorful cast of true originals.

For 32 days, they've been developing,

growing, transforming.

Now, their time has come.

Urgently, they begin knocking on the door to the outside world.

Ready to break through.

In their first moments of life,

you can tell that they are ancient creatures.

There are shades of dinosaur

or miniature dragon about them.

But as soon as they've had a chance to dry and fluff up a little,

it's easy to see what they really are.

Bright eyed, downy ducklings.

Each egg was laid a day apart,

but they all hatch together within 24 hours.

They will face the world as a family.

They recognize their mother by her familiar voice.

She's been softly cooing to them through their shells

for the last few weeks.

They imprint on her the moment they see her.

Sealing a bond that's the key to their survival.

But even as they nestle into her feathers,

a combination of excitement and hunger makes them eager to leave the nest.

And at dawn the very next morning after they hatch,

their mother leaves and begins to call to them.

She's calling them out of the nest.

They don't hesitate.

With small, sharp claws on the ends of their webbed toes,

they climb the sides of the nest.

A daunting reality is waiting for each of them.

Their safe and cozy home is some 70 feet up

in the hollow of an oak tree.

It's just the second day of her life.

She can't fly.

At this stage, she doesn't really have any wings to speak of.

But she can see the ground far below.

And hear her mother's calls.

Maybe courage comes from necessity.

Maybe it comes in knowing from birth exactly what to do.

She weighs less than an ounce,

and lands softly and safely in the leaf litter below.

And one by one,

ducklings rain down from the tall oak tree.

The siblings rally together on the forest floor.

Their mother continues calling from the middle of a nearby pond,

and with single-minded purpose and surprising speed,

her brood sets off towards her.

The tiny ducklings are unstoppable.

Just ahead lies the world they were made for.

And they take to the pond like...

..well,

ducks to water!

Out on the pond, a vision awaits them.

Resplendent in feathers of green and Chestnut,

ornately patterned and trimmed in white,

with bill and eyes of blazing red.

The ducklings' parents are North American wood ducks,

dazzling members of a remarkable group of waterfowl.

Ducks are complex characters...

..fascinating and funny,

sophisticated and silly.

Much of their lives, we never see,

yet they seem as familiar as a nursery rhyme.

There are pintails,

and buffleheads,

eiders,

widgeons,

canvasbacks,

and green-winged teals.

More than 120 different species in all.

On the land they waddle.

A comical combo of stout bodies, short legs,

webbed feet, and a quack.

But in the water, they glide.

Each one a sea-worthy little ship in watertight feathers.

In the air, ducks are powerful flyers.

Winging their way across continents,

some traveling thousands of miles in a single year.

But no matter where they're headed, all ducks come home to water.

It's in water that they make a living.

Our wood ducklings were born knowing this.

No parent provides for them.

They start feeding all on their own the minute they enter the water.

Their pond in spring is brimming with good things to eat.

Tiny crustaceans and the larvae of aquatic insects cloud the water,

turning the pond into a veritable duck soup.

Although wood ducks dine on many plants,

little woodies need more protein

in their first weeks of life while they're building their bodies.

They sift through the gooey pondweed,

harvesting tiny invertebrates from the greenery.

Their mother is never far away.

But they don't need her to teach them the ropes,

they need her to protect them.

For, like all ducklings,

the woodies have entered the food chain

smack in the middle.

Their pond may be small,

but it's complete.

Hawks,

foxes,

even neighborhood cats take a terrible toll on little ducklings.

Large mouthed bass and hungry snapping turtles

lurk in the murky waters.

In some years, nine out of 10 wood ducklings

fall to predators within their first two weeks.

And they are vulnerable even when full grown.

Though the ducklings may look up to their parents,

the adults are only six or seven inches tall.

And weigh only about a pound and a half.

Canada geese tower over them.

So far this season,

our wood duck family has been lucky.

Their pond has been a remarkably safe place.

At the end of the day, the mother shepherds her brood

to a secluded spot that offers cover and protection.

A male wood ducks takes no part in raising the family.

He will rest afloat in the center of the pond,

or, true to his name,

fly up into the safety of the trees to roost for the night.

A duck's identity lies in more than its name.

It all starts with how and where it eats.

There's the water's surface,

where "dabblers" float along...

..scooping up all kinds of plants and creatures

that conveniently collect and grow there.

But there's often something worth eating, a little bit deeper,

and with head down and bottoms up, they can just reach it.

Other ducks go deeper.

They're "divers",

finding food along rocky and sandy floors

that dabbling ducks can't reach.

Up and down they go,

bringing up the daily catch.

Of course, there's always someone who wants it both ways.

Buffleheads are diving ducks,

but this little female

has spied something delicious just beneath the surface.

She's not good at dabbling, but she can't resist.

She gets no points for style,

but she does get her prize.

Ducklings know if they are divers or dabblers right from the start.

And these little ruddy ducks were born to dive...

..just like their dad.

The ducklings use their enormous feet to propel them down.

It may be six weeks before the little ruddies take to the air.

But in water,

they already seem to fly.

Growing up to be just like their parents is trickier for other chicks.

This devoted mother and her bright yellow ducklings

are actually not related at all.

She's a female lesser scaup,

and on close inspection,

the little yellow chicks are redhead ducklings.

They will develop into adults that look like this.

Redhead females

make a practice of laying some eggs in another duck's nest...

..leaving the raising and protecting of the hatchlings to someone else.

The ducklings imprint on their foster mother,

and she doesn't seem to notice that they're different.

The yellow chicks tag along with the dark scaup chicks

in one big blended family.

But when the adopted chicks grow up,

they in turn will lay eggs in another duck's nest.

It's a hedge against bad luck,

and should a predator raid their own nests,

having some eggs "in another basket" is a pretty good backup plan.

Of all the things that shape a duck's character,

water is one of the most powerful.

From high energy waters like this, comes a very different duck.

Torrent ducks revel in

the tumultuous Mountain rivers of the andes in South America.

They're the whitewater adrenaline junkies of the duck world,

fearlessly leaping into the fastest water they can find.

Everything about them is designed for this,

from their extra thick, rubbery feet,

to their long, stiff, rudder-like tail.

This cold, clear water, however, is not rich in food,

so each pair of torrents stakes out a stretch of river

and defends it for all they're worth.

They are one of the very few ducks to require their own territories.

It's all about securing enough food to raise a family,

and to take care of hers,

the orge-breasted female sets off on a surprising climb.

She's sitting on eggs on a cliffhanger of a nest.

It's a home made of moss covered with a quilt of down.