18th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
Mallard drake guarding his hen and nest of eggs

The drake was guarding his hen's nest of eggs. I had been to the site a week or so earlier and saw her on the nest. Spring vegetation now blocked my view of the female. The drake floated in the pond never taking his eyes off of me.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 04.2020
Date Uploaded: 07.2020
Photo Location: Saratoga Springs, New York, United States of America
Copyright: © Peter Benoit