*Spring in my yard!!

Brandi I got to watch Mother Nature at work. A pair of mallards wandered into my yard so we decided to feed them. We watched for a bit and then came in the house. A few seconds later we heard quacking so we went to the window. Another duck had joined them, a male to be exact. I pretty much knew what was going to happen since I have seen it many times. Ducks are not shy. One of the drakes had the little female by the neck and was trying to hop on her back.....the other was trying to fight off his rival. Brandi said "they're going to hurt her, I'm going out to scare them away". I told her it was natural and that we had to let nature run its course. I also told her that eventually one of the males would give up and go on his merry way. We continued to watch and see what would happen. They continued their battle in my yard and slowly made their way to Barb's yard behind mine. I was right, one of them gave up and turned the other direction. The other 2 sat a few feet apart from each other for a while and then they too went away together. I don't know which male was which so I have no idea if it was the 1st one or 2nd one that stayed with her. This time of year is always interesting when it comes to the critters...they like to breed in my yard in front of anyone that is around. When Brandi was very little she saw 2 rabbits "fighting" and said.."Mom! that rabbit is jumping on the other...she was horrified! I went to see what she was talking about and all I could do was laugh.....the male was 'jumping' on the wrong end of the female! Maybe it was his first time or maybe that is part of the rabbit mating ritual. I could hardly console Brandi because she thought the poor bunny was getting beat up.
I've witnessed many animals during their rituals and some look and sound extremely vicious. In case anyone wonders...NO...I don't go looking to watch these acts, I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. I'm a nature lover so I find it interesting to see the critters do what comes natural. The only complaint I have is the robins. They like to build their nest under my deck which happens to be right outside Brandi's bedroom window. They see their reflections and figure another bird is in their territory so they fly into the window all day long. I've covered it and various other things but it always failed. Last year I kept close watch on the deck and as soon as I saw a nest being built I removed it. We couldn't even go in the yard for fear of being dive-bombed by those crazy birds. I know my brothers have experienced that also. My plan is to staple some screen across the openings but if the robins get there before me I'll remove the nest again. Two years in a row of the window banging was enough for us!
DEB