Breeding teal UK

[mgsontour]

Has anyone had a go at breeding teal and releasing them or even making an area attractive for wild ones to breed? Thanks in advance lads

[Stephen-H]

Don't know about the breeding side of things but I imagine if you had a good sized pond you could do things to encourage breeding by putting up nesting tubes & feeding the pond all year round so there is a constant food source & shelter for them

[jall25]

2 hours ago, mgsontour said:

Has anyone had a go at breeding teal and releasing them or even making an area attractive for wild ones to breed? Thanks in advance lads

Tried to make a few smaller - shallower ponds that teal have taken to

Plenty of nests tubes up and might have a teal in one but cant really tell if she without getting too close 

Also feed the ponds daily with wheat and mix of smaller seeds 

[mgsontour]

Thanks lads. The reason I've put up the question is because a farmer friend of mine has a good supply of wild teal fighting his dykes in winter so I got to thinking ( as you do ) about breeding a few to have as call ducks but never heard of anyone doing it so thought I'd ask the PW fountain of knowledge

[jall25]

7 minutes ago, mgsontour said:

Thanks lads. The reason I've put up the question is because a farmer friend of mine has a good supply of wild teal fighting his dykes in winter so I got to thinking ( as you do ) about breeding a few to have as call ducks but never heard of anyone doing it so thought I'd ask the PW fountain of knowledge

Make the habitat better - feed - control the predators 

Before just releasing more birds 

[ditchman]

make the habitat better.....you have teal so you are 90% there...............seen it done in Norfolk and it worked supremely well....ponds and flashes were opened up in the Carrs and the little missiles used to come in more and more you could set your clock on them.......less reed control and less weed control...

gave up shooting teal cause i thought they were such a valiant brave little bird.....(i will still eat them if someone else shoots them tho .)

[Pushandpull]

Breeding teal use quiet secluded small ponds. In the breeding season the adults feed largely on invertebrates, and of course so do the young. I don't think that regular visits and feeding would help. Even in captive collections they are very wary of human presence. I don't know but suspect that UK bred teal migrate as well as the vast numbers which come here from abroad so the idea of a resident population seems a bit doubtful.

[jall25]

6 hours ago, Pushandpull said:

Breeding teal use quiet secluded small ponds. In the breeding season the adults feed largely on invertebrates, and of course so do the young. I don't think that regular visits and feeding would help. Even in captive collections they are very wary of human presence. I don't know but suspect that UK bred teal migrate as well as the vast numbers which come here from abroad so the idea of a resident population seems a bit doubtful.

 

I feed meal worms - ducklings hoover them up 

[scolopax]

Breeding Teal are a real rarity in the UK lowlands. They will nest in the uplands , think bogs on moors and similar. I doubt there is anything you can do to encourage teal to breed on a typical lowland pond or drain. As a breeding bird they like ‘wild land’, by far the majority of our wintering birds come from across the North Sea, Scandinavia, Baltic states possibly Russia (lots of wigeon come from Russia). 
 

Best to encourage Mallard to breed.