C.R. Morehead

Let me know how your hugelkultur goes! We are trying a variety of things here...raised beds, deep mulch planting, black plastic, deep row planting, and kind of our own polyface technique. We have two pens next to each other. The large one housed our just freshened goats and their newborn kids while the small pen housed 3 piglets. When the goats got big enough, they were integrated into what we call "general population" (the big goat pen/pasture area). Once the big pen that the young goats were living in was available, we moved the now much bigger piggies to the bigger pen and the small pen is now available. Sooooo we planted corn in the small pen (about 500 plants worth --- 2 ears per plant --- 1000 ears of corn....yea-yuhh!!). The corn loved the piggy-fied dirt and was 9 feet tall within 50 days. We just harvested the corn, the sow in the big pen is about to give birth and so now we'll move her and her babies back to the small pen to give birth and start all over again! It works fabulously!!

Matu Collins wrote:I have seen some terrible mating aggression in flocks of wild mallards with a high ratio of males to females.

I think the practical discussion of what to do with one's own flock of ducks belongs in this forum. The topic of anthropomorphism and the nature of rape/rape in nature is an interesting one to me, but one that belongs in the cider press forums.

I believe the topic was started with someone being concerned about duck rape and aggression...not what one does with one's flock as you put it. And rather than labeling it anthropomorphism, it's more like just average farmers, like myself, putting things in layman's terms and not trying their best at being pretentious. But yes, our ducks will stalk their target and rape them. They have both raped and killed chickens and ducks. This is not your average aggressive mating. As far as cider press forums, I do not think they have anything to do with our discussion of duck rape. I also do not find the nature of rape interesting. Disgusting and outrageous...yes...interesting? No.

I've never tried it but I'm glad I found your post. Now I want to try it! Looks pretty nifty... I see you're in Dallas. I went to school at UNT. Living in NW Louisiana now. Do you often see Southerners in the permaculture forums? Everything is always Washington, Oregon, California. Our culture/climate is a bit different down here and so many things they do, aren't feasible here. Frustrating.

Landon Sunrich wrote:I don't buy the 'its an instinct so it can't be rape' argument. This is the excuse so often used by human males in many parts of the world/subsets of society.

Rape = violent action (using force) in addition to instinct (wanting to screw). Drakes are nasty little bastards - they will totally f*ck to death you're female ducks. It happens very often. I have always felt that drakes are best eaten.

Alright now that we're past that (an internet debate on what constitutes rape - that could turn ugly) I have a follow up question/comment regarding 'keepers' in the male water fowl community.

I'm pretty sure I have two female and one male Goose. I'm just going with my gut and observations here. The two 'females' have blockier heads and stockier bodies - while the 'male' is a little more streamline. T. Rex the 'alpha female' is the most talkative and social, but Punk Rock the 'male' always bathes first chasing everyone else out if necessary. Otherwise though he is one of the quietest, sweetest geese I've ever met. A gentleman he. If he is a man that is.

I don't know. Anyone got any good goose sexing tips? I know this is a duck thread - but seems like an ongoing discussion of waterfowl mating was a good one to jump in on.

I am brand new here...first comment ever. I like how you look at things. They are nasty little bastards, ducks that is. I sex geese by doing the unfavorable...vent sexing. I know you can supposedly study them and see that usually the males are first in the water because ganders jump on and do the nasty in the water, so naturally, yeah they'll be first in the water and the females usually stand by debating about going in because, well...they know what's going to happen to them when they get in. But vent sexing gives you straight away confirmation. My boys say the gander ding-dong looks like a sea snail btw.