Saturday, April 7, 2012

Mallard Duck Symbolic Totem Meaning


This week we had a visit from a Mallard Duck, inspiring me to share their symbolic meaning with you. Our visitor was a male Mallard, beautiful in his blue green colors. He happened to just come walking through our woodland tree line and across the yard to our home.

Mallard Duck
As my husband and I were sitting on our porch, we were intrigued and watched with curiosity at this little guy. At first when he arrived, he took a walk down our driveway, slowly turning from left to right as he walked, looking into the woods as if he was looking for something. We thought by chance maybe he was looking for his mate? (Just prior we had had a blustery thunderstorm and wondered if he had gotten blown off course). Mallards don't mate for life, but they do mate for the season.

 Once he got to the end of the driveway he walked back up toward our home, purposeful, directly for the porch.


He had no fear of humans, he was quite comfortable in fact. He was attracted to our front porch, and the flower beds planted around it. He spent a few hours walking around it, looking at us, looking at the flowers, and behaved as if he had been here all of his life.
Mallards imprint very easily and are very sociable. They don't like to be alone. This is something to look at if you have a duck for a totem ~ they reference to the need to be around those of like mind, where you feel comfortable and safe.
This mallard certainly felt safe with us. He spent plenty of time meandering around our porch listening to us talk, watching us water the flowers, even watching our dog who was enjoying her afternoon on the porch.


As much as the Mallard seemed interested in us, we were just as interested in him and his presence. Mallards are symbolic of emotions, as they are associated with the water element. They help in reminding one to take care of their emotional self, to nurture, and be easy on the spirit. They represent being able to handle your emotions with grace and strength. And after spending time with this mallard, I find they teach one to trust their instincts about others..and align yourself with those that have a kind spirit, fostering healthy relationships. (In Feng Shui, Mallards are symbolic for relationships and commitment)


And as evening approached, the mallard stayed on. Surprising us by walking up the porch steps and directly to our screen door. There he stood, for at least a half hour, as if waiting for someone to answer the door and let him in. We were amazed with his presence, continued watching, until finally we needed to go back inside for the evening. Several times we looked at the window, only to find him still standing on the porch.

He would take breaks and walk back down the steps to a nearby rain puddle, stand in it and drink the waters, then return to the porch.

When morning arrived, I immediately went to the door to see if our visitor was still with us...and he was.


He continued to spend time with us that morning, grazing for food in the moss near our trees, and then back to the rain puddles. He made many trips up and down the steps of the porch, talking all the while...until finally as the sun was shining brightly he walked to the end of the porch and flew off.

Now of course me, who always feels that there is a reason for everything, and finds a deeper meaning in life's actions, pondered on why this little guy came to visit. I think he was a reminder...a reminder that no matter what is going on in the world, what challenges you face, find solace in those loving spirits in your life who are kind, bring you comfort, and make you feel safe. Because in the end...it's all about the love.

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7 comments:

Liesl said...

Hello,..I'm the second of six and we were born at home with my father as the midwife. My mother tells the story of when I was ready to enter the world, her contractions stopped for awhile so they went for a walkand sat in the park to try to stimulate them again. While sitting in the park, a baby duck from across the way simply darted toward my mother and came to sit on her shoulder. I came soon after and, since I think like you, wondered what the meaning of all that was. I love your story and how you lay out your thoughts about your guest. Thank you!

Re-Ignition said...

Thank you very much for sharing your experience on the www. During the past couple of weeks I have been visited by Mallard Duck and love his soft quacking presence. I came across your blog because I was looking for the Mallard Duck as totem animal.
I love your painting of the Mallard. If you want to see mine you can find it on my website www.ArtofSila.co.uk
All the very best to you from
Anna Marie

KC said...

Hello, I was just sitting down to journal and a male mallard walked up to the window and tapped his bill on it. He was quite persistent, tap-tap-tapping and looking right at me. His feathers were a gorgeous blue-green. His female mate was about 15 feet away, shyly pacing back by the trees. When I took his picture, he waddled back to her and the two of them meandered away. What a delightful visit! Thank you for sharing your interpretations, too.

Jeanne Fry Art said...

Thank you for sharing your stories with me. I love hearing how others connect with the animal totems :)

Anonymous said...

<3 It's a few years later, but this article has been very helpful for me, as a neighbor fed a small flock of Mallards all winter (yes, I know they weren't supposed to be doing that), and while only yesterday while cleaning my front yard found three Mallard feathers, left for me right there at the entrance to my porch, among a few leaves. They made me smile, remembering the fun my cat and I had all winter watching them...then it occurred to me to look-up the meaning of Mallards...and I found this! Thanks again for this insightful article; it's greatly enriched the whole experience or me. <3

Nancee said...

Over three years have passed since you posted this. I guess with the internet we never know when someone will read our posts. Yesterday I met a new fella for a walk. We were sitting by the pond where a huge gathering of mallard ducks were floating about... perhaps preparing for migration as a few weeks ago there were only a handful of them. Suddenly a pair of mallards popped up from the pond and the male looked straight at me. They came to nibble on the bits of grass across the path. He then led his mate within a foot of me to some more grass. They were delightful and would have hung out longer if an overly zealous dog hadn't come by. Since I've also had three very noticeable visits recently from Muskrat (including 5 mins prior to the Mallard) I decided to come looking for any messages either brought. Emotions seem to be foremost with both. The mallards however soothed mine and showed me how easy it is to just trust and relax and love. Thank you!

Jeanne Fry Art said...

Thank you for sharing Nancee :) The mallards are such a beautiful totem !

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