NEW ORLEANS — There has been an invasion of ducks in New Orleans area parks and canals in recent days.
People are reporting huge flocks of black bellied whistling ducks suddenly appearing overnight.
They are a sight to see and hear at Lafreniere Park in Metairie.
“This is the most I’ve seen recently, so they’re like in bigger groups now, that’s good I guess,” birdwatcher Valerie Ruiz said. “I guess they’re happy.”
“There’s so many of them here and in the canals and all over, birdwatcher Elroy Mendel said. “It’s really something else to see.”
Another large flock has invaded Audubon Park in Uptown New Orleans.
They are everywhere, on the water, on the banks and in the trees.
With their upright posture, orange beaks and pink feet, the black bellied ducks are hard to miss.
University of Holy Cross biology professor Dr. Peter Yaukey has a theory on why the ducks may have suddenly appeared in such great numbers.
He says they may have flown across the Mississippi River from an area near Westbank grain elevators where they normally roost.
“When they do decide to use one park instead of another, it’s likely to be a big change,” Yaukey said. “It won’t be just a few of them that move there. It could be a whole bunch.”
The black bellied whistlers are native to Mexico and made their way from Texas to Louisiana about 15 years ago.
There are now tens of thousands of these ducks living in the metro area year-round.
“We have no idea why their population has exploded the way it has,” Yaukey said. “We don’t even know whether they’re having any kind of deleterious effect on other species or not.”
Recently, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries reported an avian cholera killed more than 1,000 black-bellied whistling ducks in New Orleans and surrounding areas.
But from the looks of things, the duck population continues to thrive here.
“I love them and they’re growing year after year after year there seems to be more,” birdwatcher Laurie Baumgartner said. “They peep when they fly so I call them peepers.”
These ducks also like hang out near the water treatment plant at the Orleans-Jefferson parish line and in the Batture ponds across River Road from the River Shack in Old Jefferson.
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