# Common Merganser with 50 babies

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-merganser-with-50-babies/817927>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [July 15, 2018, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-merganser-with-50-babies/817927 "2018-07-15T00:54:43Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 8\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![FloatyGimpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/floatygimpy/32/7750_2.png) [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-merganser-with-50-babies/817927/1 "2018-07-15T00:54:43Z")

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This is just the cutest thing ever and thought I’d share. Great article with an amazing photo of the adopted family:

> **[Here's Why This Mama Merganser Has More Than 50 Ducklings](https://www.audubon.org/news/heres-why-mama-merganser-has-more-50-ducklings)**
>
> A photographer in Minnesota recently captured an adorable shot of a Common Merganser followed by dozens of fuzzy babies.

Actually I think there are more than 50. It’s hard to know what’s a head or a bum but I think there’s 55+

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**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-merganser-with-50-babies/817927/2 "2018-07-15T01:06:59Z")

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That’s pretty neat. Thanks for sharing.

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**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-merganser-with-50-babies/817927/3 "2018-07-15T01:10:38Z")

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That totally fucking rocks!

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**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-merganser-with-50-babies/817927/4 "2018-07-15T01:19:05Z")

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It’s a good thing the book wasn’t _Make Way for Merganserlings_; the names would have gone through the alphabet twice!

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**Author:** ![ioioio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ioioio/32/316_2.png) [@ioioio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ioioio)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-merganser-with-50-babies/817927/5 "2018-07-15T02:06:40Z")

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Bless the beasts and the children.

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**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-merganser-with-50-babies/817927/6 "2018-07-15T02:18:30Z")

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Cute overdose!

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**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-merganser-with-50-babies/817927/7 "2018-07-15T11:26:33Z")

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That made me want to go to the Wikipedia page for the common merganser, which contains an interesting fact about their diet:

> [@](#):
>
> The common merganser eats fish and nests in holes in trees.

But it won’t eat nests that are on crooks of limbs!

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**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/common-merganser-with-50-babies/817927/8 "2018-07-15T17:33:54Z")

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> [@Ludovic](#):
>
> That made me want to go to the Wikipedia page for the common merganser, which contains an interesting fact about their diet:

Look at the [bill](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_merganser#/media/File:Goosander_looking_up.jpg) :). You never want to get bit by a merganser - they’re like little raptors. Seriously, waddling around on land they’ve always looked like miniature dinosaurs to me.