What is a duck?

What is the best thing to do about these duck eggs in my garden?

• This morning when I went outside I found 4 duck eggs in my garden as there is a duck pond near to where I live. The mother duck made me jump when it flew out of the nest which is on the ground. The mother duck has never returned to the nest since this morning. I went out for a bit and came home and there were only 3 duck eggs one had disappeared. There is not a lot I know about duck eggs but what is the best thing to do about the remaining 3 so they can hatch into baby ducklings?

• Answer:

  If you would like it if the mother duck incubated a brood of ducklings in your garden, just leave her to it. She will lay one egg a day until she has a clutch of about 12-15, and only then will she start to sit on them. If she started straight away the eggs wouldn't hatch all at the same time, would they? She will incubate for 28 days and then they will hatch. One egg has probably been stolen by a rat or other predator, and this will be a risk for the others as well. If you want to keep the nest, you could feed the duck with wheat soaked in a shallow container of water. Ducks need to be able to dabble for their food and like it wet. Whatever you do, don't feed bread, which is very bad for ducks. Provide clean drinking water as well. When they hatch she will take them across to the pond. Ducks nest under the rhubarb leaves on my allotment, and when the babies emerge Mum lines them up and they all go off down to the river!