> Where do these Mandarins come from? They appear to be wild, and wear no
> leg bands. We have never seen wild Mandarins nor heard reports of these
> ducks anywhere else in western Washington. This is a mystery begging to be
> solved.

There was a report of a Mandarin duck at Nisqually Refuge (if I remember
correctly) several months ago and I responded to Tweeters with a message
concerning a pair of Mandarins that began nesting in a wetland along the
Nisqually River near McKenna some years back. I saw the pair in April of
1997. The landowner told me they had been around for several years, apparently
attracted to the extensive forested and emergent wetlands and the abundance
of wood duck boxes scattered about.

Where do these Mandarins come from? I don't know but if they beed successfully
in Wood Duck nest boxes, we will likely be seeing more of them.

Kelly McAllister
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife