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On September 8, 2022, word emerged about nesting Black-bellied Whistling Ducks nesting on a small farm pond in Wayne County. The landowner, Henry Miller, noticed the ducks on his pond, and quite understandably did not recognize this largely tropical species. A neighbor, Harry Swartzentruber, made the identification, Joe Rabor got the word out, and the rest is history.
The Miller family kindly made their pond accessible to interested birders, and I visited yesterday. They have gone to some lengths to accommodate visitors at their sheep farm, and their guest log showed that several dozen people had visited as of yesterday.
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As the map shows, Black-bellied Whistling-Duck is very much a tropical bird. For a long time, in the U.S. it was largely a Rio Grande Valley (Texas) specialty. That was the northern limit for the species. In the last two decades, especially, this duck has wandered far to the north in ever increasing numbers. Ohio's first record dates to May 30, 2004, in Hamilton County. I remember that record well, especially as I was secretary of the Ohio Bird Records Committee at the time. That bird didn't stick but it was photographed. The listers needn't have fretted, as the 2004 bird was a precursor of things to come. In the years since, Ohio has had probably a few dozen records, and multiple reports annually in more recent times. This pattern holds true throughout much of the eastern U.S.
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Nine chicks arrange themselves neatly around their mom (or dad?). Apparently at first, there were ten chicks, and I have heard reports that a Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina) that makes its home in the pond got one of them. Big snappers are a very real threat to young ducklings. Hopefully it will get no more.
At the time of this photo, I think the chicks are 5-6 days old. Observers should notice fluffy down feathers start to emerge within a few days. They'll quickly lose the cool black stripes. Within the second week they'll go on a growth spurt and should be able to take wing in about 60 days, which would be early in the second week of November. This is very late, though, and north-central Ohio will have experienced some very frosty weather by then. Why they nested so late in the year is a mystery, at least to me, and these whistling-ducks, evolved for far warmer climes, are probably pushing the envelope in terms of survivability with this abnormally later nesting.
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Another mystery is where the nest site was. Black-bellied Whistling-Duck is a habitual cavity-nester, and I didn't see any likely sites at hand. However, they can ground nest, if need be, and sometimes even use odd sites such as barn lofts. I have heard, thirdhand, that the nest was actually discovered, but don't know any details.
This is an exciting record, and probably the first of more nestings to follow in Ohio and elsewhere in the Midwest. Wisconsin has already had a breeding record, in 2020. It'll be interesting to see how this apparent range expansion plays out in the years to come. For now, we can wish the best for the Wayne County brood and hope the lateness of the season does not cause them issues.