A Duck on One Leg? My Collage for LMAC #178

avatar
(Edited)

A Peaceful Lake Scene
178 pixabay 17.png

The Template Photo, by @shaka
SKDMZ90 - Imgur.jpg

My Second Collage, Silly, for Fun
178 new version gif2.gif

The One-Legged Duck

If you look at the duck in @shaka's template photo for Round #177 of the LMAC Contest, you will note that the animal is standing on one leg. This phenomenon is quite common in the duck world. Has the duck been injured? If so, apparently that is not necessarily a fatal injury. According to a New Zealand website I came across, ducks manage quite fine with one leg. However, the duck in @shaka's picture is probably just standing on one leg. That is normal behavior.

Mallard in Ireland Standing on One Leg
Duck_on_one_leg,_Monaghan_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3934644.jpg
Attribution:Duck on one leg, Monaghan by Kenneth Allen. Used under CC Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 generic license.

Ducks stand on one leg in order to preserve body heat. An article in the Omaha World-Herald explains that several avian species stand on one leg: "...to thermoregulate (control their body temperature) during cold weather... the same way a person might wrap their arms around themselves when cold."

An alternate strategy for ducks and geese to preserve body heat is to sit. This brings to mind the idiom 'sitting duck'. That is a hunting (😏) term and refers to how easy it is to shoot a duck that is sitting rather that flying.

Several Ducks Sitting
three ducks resting.png
Credit: @agmoore

You will note two ducks in my picture (above) are tucking their beaks under a wing. This is not only a heat-conserving technique, but also allows the duck to rest its neck. The bird in the foreground (in my picture, again) is preening, apparently, not resting its beak. Preening helps to keep the duck free from dirt and parasites.

The bird in @shaka's picture may be injured, may be conserving body heat, or may simply like to stand that way. Referring to the Omaha World-Herald article again, the ducks are believed to have "...a much better sense of balance than we do, and are able to position their center of balance over their supporting leg...",

So if you were wondering why the duck in the template photo is standing on one leg (I can't be the only person who noticed), your curiosity I hope has been satisfied.

My Collage

As is often the case, this week I used collage making for relaxation. You will see additions in the top collage that seem unnecessary, but these were fun to find and place. I took my time in making this and really got into the scene. It's a very nice, accessible, inexpensive form of escapism. No drugs necessary :))

The second collage was an afterthought. It was silly excursion into the ridiculous. Again, making this was great fun and I hope it is fun to look at.

Below I list all the contributors from LIL and public domain sources who loaned me their creativity in order for me to express mine. Thanks to everyone on this list.

Public domain:

These are the pictures from LIL that I contributed at some point in the past:

Process:
There were many false starts with the first (my main) collage, but once I found the picture with a lake and picnic bench, I was off. Here are some steps along the way:

178 process gif 1.gif

Here are some stages for the second collage (the GIF):

178 new version process gif.gif

LMAC and LIL

Every week is an adventure in the LMAC Collage contest. This week I learned more about ducks!

Please check out the LMAC curation feed to see the amazing works of art that the community artists have created.

Everyone who competes is a winner (I don't compete), but the Hive community selects the official winners. This week's contest will continue until Monday night. Join in the fun, please. On Thursday, the contest begins anew.

You can see that LIL, the LMAC Image Library, was an essential part of my collage creating process this week. Everyone on Hive can contribute to the library and everyone can borrow from the library. Learn about the procedure here.

I wish all my readers peace and health.

Thank you for reading my blog

Hive on

letsmakeacollage art science nature birds ducks community hive creativecoin proofofbrain
0
0
0.000
32 comments
avatar

Lovely! Such a peaceful setting. And yes, ducks are famous for standing on one leg. Who knows why! Maybe it gives the other foot a rest.

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Hello my friend, @jayna. So nice to see you here (I love your photo!). I love ducks. We have found a spot where they like to hang out and we visit occasionally.

Thanks for reading and commenting. Hope you are well and your family, also.

Warm regards,
AG

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Canada geese do this too, and they're massive, so those must be some power legs. Pretty fun animation. Heh

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Pretty fun animation

😁A little sloppy maybe, but fun

Canada geese do this too, and they're massive, so those must be some power legs

According to the Omaha World-Herald article, there is an anatomical explanation, also: "locking the tendons in their legs much more efficiently than we can lock our own knees."

Thanks a lot for the comment :)

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

"locking the tendons in their legs much more efficiently than we can lock our own knees."

Interesting! This seems like the kind of mechanism that should be useful on some human technology. Thank you for looking it up.

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Hello friend, as always in your collages I learn something new, I really didn't know why they stood on one leg, everything has an explanation in nature. When I was a child I had some ducks as pets and I bathed them to keep them clean. Excellent collage, I hope you are well.

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Hello my friend, @cetb2008.

I had some ducks as pets and I bathed them to keep them clean.

That sounds wonderful. I love ducks (who doesn't? 😇)

Thank you for your kind words. Actually, I was quite tired this week and the collage gave me to opportunity to rest and yet feel productive.

I hope your growing family is well and enjoying the great hikes you take together.

Take care.

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

You have set all these pictures very well and the gif you have made for her is very beautiful. All these duck's looks so cute.

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Thank you very much, @djbravo. I appreciate that you read my blog and made such a lovely comment.

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

I love how you captured the beauty and diversity of nature. The colors, contrasts and compositions are amazing. You have a great eye for photography.👏

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

I saw it
I wonder how it is managing to walk
Can it even move?

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Hello, @rafzat,
I've seen them stand but I've never seen them walk on one leg. And yet, they seem to manage.

Thanks for stopping by.

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Hello, a beautiful and magical landscape.

excellent collage

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Thanks a lot, dera @eve66. You are such a good artist. Your assessment means a great deal to me :)

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

You created something magical as always. The animated version is fun and puts me in mind of the 'doors scene' from the early 70s movie Flight of the Doves. I haven't thought about that movie for years but it was a favourite when we were kids., filmed in Ireland and reuniting Jack Wilde and Ron Moody who previously worked together in Oliver.

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

May I confess that I thought of you when I did the animation? I know you appreciate the zany look in those little pieces so I had fun. So glad you did enjoy it. Flight of the Doves is new to me, but I just viewed a few clips. It does look delightful...two boys running from a scoundrel. I'll have to track it down.

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

You're such a sweetheart! And yes, it's the zaniness of your animations that send me scrolling through your collage posts without reading a word...No pressure now!:)
If you're familiar with the song 'You don't have to be Irish to be Irish' that's from Flight of the Doves. It also has a scene in Dublin's Merchant's Arch, filmed outside my uncle's secondhand bookshop which as kids we found quite thrilling.

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

On St. Patrick's Day, everyone is Irish in New York 🍀

Found the clip!

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

That's how I feel @agmoore, each collage is an adventure, sometimes I make two or three and then I choose, I had never thought of hanging them all. Making them is a therapy, researching, it nourishes our knowledge and letting out what we carry inside at the end is a sublime moment.

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Thank you, @evagavilan2 for sharing your perspective. I had issues to deal with this week, real-life issues and the collage was a gift. It's also really rewarding when people appreciate the effort.

Hope you have a great week and I'm looking forward to seeing your next collage. T

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Really creative animation!! it reminded me the old scooby doo scenes hahah

That lake for sure looks pacific

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Hi @agmoore 👋

You have created such a lovely and magical place in "A Peaceful Lake Scene", and it indeed looks wonderfully peaceful. Very inviting.
Great work!

My Second Collage, Silly, for Fun

It captivated me for a while. Somehow it is a bit hypnotizing. :-D
Also well done and it is pretty funny. 👍

Thanks for using my #LIL stuff.

🤗

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Dear friend @quantumg,

I am so very happy you like my collages. This week they were indeed therapy. I needed to take a break from a lot of stuff and having the collages to play with was a great way to be productive.

Sometimes when I make the country scenes in my collages I think of the pristine environments you describe seeing when you hike. I think we both have a great need for that sort of nourishment 🌲

My zany post was a bit of lighthearted play. Great fun to make and I'm happy it was received well.

Hope you are not too busy. I really appreciate the visit and the kind words.

Have a peaceful week,
Warm regards

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

I think we both have a great need for that sort of nourishment

"Nourishment" describes it wonderfully. :-) 👍
It is essential for the soul to survive!

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Really fun and playful creation, A.G.@agmoore. . That duck didn’t look that balanced on one leg but thanks for the explanation why they can do it.

Thanks for supporting so many in the lil library. 😊

0
0
0.000
Reply
avatar

Hello my friend, @redheadpei. I'm glad you enjoyed my little 'duck show' 🦆. These were fun to make.

Thanks for your lovely fox. You always have the perfect image, no matter the collage.

Hope you are well up there on P.E.I.

Regards

0
0
0.000
Reply