Quackersnacks Leaflet - St Albans City & District Council

The Truth About
Feeding Ducks
You may enjoy feeding the
ducks, and you may think it
benefits them, but do you
realise you could be doing
them some harm?
When ducks and other waterfowl (such as
geese and swans) are fed human food such
as bread, their health can suffer. Bread is
very low in protein and contains added
ingredients that waterfowl can’t digest
properly. It is a poor alternative for the natural
foods waterfowl usually eat, such as water
plants and natural grains.
In places where ducks and other waterfowl
are fed large amounts of bread, they are
sometimes found to be suffering from poor
nutrition. As a result, they may become slow
and find it difficult to escape from predators
such as foxes.
Feeding ducks bread can attract waterfowl
from other areas and leads to unusually high
numbers of birds in one place. This
overcrowding can help diseases build up, and
lead to the waterfowl becoming aggressive
towards each other. They may also become a
nuisance to humans.
The Quakersnacks project is
aimed at educating people
about the effects of feeding
waterfowl.

Your Health
What you can do to help
Bread thrown into the lake or onto the banks
can cause problems for waterfowl, fish and the
environment.
When bread rots in the water, it creates perfect
conditions for algae (a plant which grows in the
water) to grow. The algae uses up the oxygen
which fish need to survive, and large amounts
of algae can make the water smell unpleasant.
Certain types of algae can make the water
poisonous to pets if they drink it.
Bread which is left behind can attract pests
such as rats and foxes. Waterfowl and rats will
leave droppings where they feed, so bread left
at the edge of the water will create an unhealthy
environment for people who visit the lake.
Many people have fond memories from
childhood of feeding the ducks. So, instead of
telling people not to feed the local wildlife at
all, we are encouraging people to use ‘healthy
snacks’ of grain rather than bread. You can get
bags of grain from the Inn on the Park or the
ice cream seller for a small fee.
We recommend that you should only feed the
waterfowl at specific feeding sites shown by
the ‘Quackersnacks’ signs. This will reduce
the amount of time and money we spend on
cleaning up the area to make it safe and
pleasant for all visitors. Birds which have a
more natural, healthier diet can expect to live
a longer, happier life.
Thank You
This leaflet can be obtained in alternative
formats, eg. in braille, large print, on audio
tape, or email by contacting the council on
01727 819366