Quote:
Originally Posted by birdiebill
We live in The Village of Osceola Hills near the junction of Deskin Lane and Zephyrhills Road. We have had a duck nest under our Robilini Palm and Lantana plants in the landscaping behind our lanai. We noticed the nest on Tuesday. A momma duck was sitting on the desk and was scared out when the lawn mower went by. We saw the nest and there were at least 8 eggs in the nest. We minimized our activities so the momma could continue to sit on the nest. We hoped to see the little ducklings when they hatched.
Well, this morning my wife noticed a large cat sitting under the Robilini Palm. We opened the slider to the lanai and the cat took off. It had a short tail, was the largest cat we had ever seen. Its color pattern was that of a bobcat. Momma duck was nowhere to be seen. No sign of its remains, so maybe it got away. Most of the eggs in the nest had been broken.
This afternoon we noticed the cat had returned. This time we got a good look at it as we scared it away. It was definitely a bobcat. Beware of your small pets. Mother Nature can be cruel at times.
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A classic predator and prey tale. A nature event (unlike the duck getting blown out of the sky during hunting season). But I guess both are needed to keep a population in balance.