Domestic muscovy duck

Also muscovy ducks have a 35 day incubation period during which they don't usually get off the nest for long.. This countdown doesn't start until after the last egg is laid. If you can't still see her in the cavity then the probability is that either the nest has been raided or the eggs have hatched. If she is still there do you know how long she has been sitting?

Hmmm, if eggshells are smashed then predation or young hens not very good about where they lay. If eggshell mostly intact with 1/3 large end popped off then ducklings could have hatched but I would think shells would have stayed in nest cavity (hen will eat some shells to regain calcium lost when eggshell made). Muscovy ducks and their closest living relative the Wood Duck both have same juvenile pattern (eyestripe posterior of eye only, in 4-spot wildtype pattern) and both have needle-sharp claws to climb out of nest cavity and then leap to ground without harm because they are so light. Commercial hatcheries sometimes hand drop the ducklings or they try to climb out of their enclosure for their jump! Check out youtube there are some cool videos like http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2cWIqDpH...

Well, there were several broken shells @ the base of the tree & she was up 15-20 feet nesting ...How would a tree nester get her young safely to water & a food source from that height, without the young being injured?

Juvenile barreds are yellow with colored tails. Color of tail will be color of adult. Because there are non-barred ducklings visible (and because barred is recessive) there must be at least 2 males involved in this clutch...and/or more than one female as egg dumping or nest takeover can occur. Let us know how they do. My bet is that the cavity nest is at high probability of getting raided by a raccoon.

One nests on the ground, with access to water 100 yards away; the tree cavity nester is nearby living on a gulf course!

So cool! Muscovies are tree cavity-nesters but most domestics make do with nests under something on the ground. Young female with wildtype (nonatipico) juvenile pattern as the barring is still somewhat apparent on chest sides. She shows barred and whitehead domestic mutant color effects (recessive and codominant respectively). Can you tell more about the circumstances? Around a lake? Farm?