It is time to get excited for spring! Our beautiful campus is beginning to bloom, and the days will (hopefully) be warmer from here on out. Most importantly, ducks have officially returned to the Botany Pond, and UChicago’s resident expert, professor emeritus in the Department of Ecology and Evolution Jerry Coyne, assured the Maroon that they are here to stay.

Jerry, as he introduced himself, has been the pond’s official “duck master” for the past eight years. He keeps watch over the mallard ducks from his third-floor office in the Zoology Building and comes down to feed them nutrient-packed pellets twice a day. Contrary to some rumors, the University does not bring the ducks to Botany Pond. The mallards find and choose Botany Pond as the place to hatch the next generation of ducklings all by themselves.

Coyne witnessed the arrival of the newest breeding pair of mallards on March 14, and they have been at Botany Pond every day since.

Since the Jewish holiday of Purim, which celebrates the saving of the Jewish people from annihilation as recounted in the Book of Esther, also fell over March 14 this year, Coyne named the new ducks Esther and Mordecai after the heroes of the story.

Coyne can tell Esther apart from Dorothy and Honey, female ducks from past years who have not returned, by the distinctive black markings on her bill.

According to Coyne, Esther has been “window-shopping” for a place to build her nest in the second-floor alcoves of Erman Biology Center that face the pond. Coyne expects Esther will build her nest within the next week, then begin laying eggs—only one a day—until she is satisfied with her clutch. Once Esther settles down to incubate the eggs, it will take about 28 days for them to hatch.

Gallery / 5 Photos

Natalie Earl

Esther and Mordecai enjoy swimming in the restored Botany Pond and relaxing at its edges.

To those who are wondering, “How do the ducklings get down from the second-story window ledge?” the answer is simple: they jump! Most of them can jump straight into the water, and those that do hit the ground land on a cushion of grass. Having monitored this process many times, Coyne claims that the ducklings seem to recover just fine and waddle themselves the rest of the way over to the pond.

There was one time though that Coyne had to intervene. In 2020 Dorothy and Honey were competing for space at Botany Pond.

Dorothy claimed space in the west windows of Erman Biology Center, above the patch of grass between the pond and the building, while Honey built her nest in the east windows of the building, 30 feet above stone pavement.

At Coyne’s urging, former University President Robert Zimmer directed a facilities team to put a duckling trampoline beneath the nest. That year’s duckling-hatching day was so harrowing that the Chicago Tribune wrote it was “as action-packed as an Avengers movie,” with “death-defying leaps from tall buildings! Violent feuding! A fired gun!”

Coyne told the Maroon he’s glad to have just one pair to watch out for this year.

As reported in December, the restoration of Botany Pond is complete. The black fencing, in place to protect the new plants, will stay up for the time being, but Coyne has requested adjustments that will allow the ducks to get in and out of those areas.

Coyne is also working to get the livestream—which was turned off when the restoration process began in 2022—turned back on, giving the University community a 24-hour look at Botany Pond. When it was in operation, the livestream received viewers from all over the world, Coyne said.

The turtles, of which there used to be over two dozen, will be reintroduced over the summer along with fish.