At first I thought this was a mallard hen. But I’ve never seen a mallard dive underwater and swim. This one dove several times in the tidewater of the Alsea River. Watch the video and tell me if you think this is a mallard. A still photo of her is below the link to the video.
I saw 2 groups of Mallard ducks across the river. They stopped to look at something on the riverbank of the Alsea River. I saw a very small mink running along the bank so I started recording. Mama-Mallard kept her 5 babies safe again!
If you watch where the duck is looking you’ll see movement under the brush. That’s the mink. He dives in after them and Mama scatters her ducklings. This is a larger mink than I saw at first so I’m wondering about a mink family living nearby??? How cool is THAT!