A Duckumentary on PBS

The PBS series Nature only runs a few new episodes a year but when they do it is often must see television. A couple of weeks ago one of those episodes aired. The title of this show called, in a very punny title, A Duckumentary. Hosted by Paul Giamatti whose voice is perfect for voice-overs this was a very enjoyable show.

Speaking of many different duck breeds but focusing primarily on a pair of wood ducks as they make their way through a full year. Filmed perfectly we see the beauty not only of the ducks themselves but there surroundings and learn many interesting facts. My wife, who unlike me and my daughter, is not exactly a nature buff, watched this show with interest which tells you all you need to know about how entrancing this show was.

We learned that ducks spend hours each day on the maintenance of their tail feathers, that they produce the ointment that they treat their feathers with, that the female chooses the male for her mating season before the winter, they spend their winter together before mating in the spring, and, this seems unfair, if she wishes at the last minute she can dump him for another male late in the game.

The most stunning visual, the one we were talking about days later was what happens to wood ducks right after they are born. Mother to be Wood Ducks make a nest in a tree, in a tree that is high, very high, off the ground. The day after the chicks arrive the Mother leaves the nest and goes out into the nearest body of water and calls the ducks. The ducks inside a tree, sixty or seventy feet in the air, then have to go to their mother. Did I mention that ducks cannot fly when they are born. The baby ducks, a day old, then jump out of the tree to the ground, in the video we watched seventy feet. The idea of this is amazing. And yes, baby ducks bounce. Incredible.

It is easy to say, when you enjoy these shows, that more people should see them, that the garbage that is on most networks at most times should be replaced by these shows. Perhaps that is true but for me the fact that this series is available to contrast with those less reputable shows makes it succeed even more so in the contrast.

Take a moment and watch these shows, if you have kids you have a built in excuse. If you do not have kids you might have the time to actually enjoy it.