Oriental treats for duck watchers

Twitchers from across the region are flocking to a market town near Wolverhampton to catch a glimpse of a rare Chinese duck.

The Mandarin drake, an oriental symbol of married bliss and fidelity, is attracting plenty of attention from bird watchers and visitors to Bridgnorth after appearing on the banks of the River Severn at Low Town.

Bird enthusiast and photographer Ray Hulse said he had seen the Mandarin several times, but doubted it had flown all the way from China.

"It has probably escaped from a UK collection, but it is still unusual to see one in an area like Bridgnorth," he said.

"It is not supposed to mix well with other ducks, but it certainly holds its own when it scrambles to get the bread that is thrown in the water."

The Mandarin duck symbol is often used in Chinese weddings because of the male's role in nurturing its offspring after they have hatched.

Unlike other species of ducks, most drakes reunite with the hens after they have mated.

The species was once widespread in eastern Asia, but large-scale exports and the destruction of its forest habitat have reduced population numbers in eastern Russia and in China to below 1,000 pairs in each country.

In the last century, a feral population of about 1,000 pairs was established in Great Britain.

Although this was of great conservational significance, the birds are not protected because the species are not native to the UK.

Mandarin ducks mainly eat plants and seeds at dawn or dusk, and they perch in trees or on the ground during the day.

They form small flocks in winter, but rarely associate with other ducks.