When the kids were little, heading to our local lake to feed the ducks was one of our favourite activities. Initially, we would take the remainder of our loaf of bread, and take it in turns to rip the slices apart and throw them to the ducks, geese and other water birds.
As it turns out, it is not good to feed ducks bread. But what do ducks eat? It was rather confronting to discover that our weekly pastime had possibly done more harm than good to the birds we had come to love. To rectify this, we began researching what was good for our feathered friends and learned what to feed ducks.
Firstly, what NOT to feed ducks
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The first thing we needed to learn was what NOT to feed ducks and other water birds. We were aghast to realise that there are quite a number of foods that you should not give ducks and their feathered friends.
Popcorn, citrus fruit, chocolate, online, garlic and avocado are all food items that you should never feed ducks.
I was thankful to learn that a small amount of bread can be a treat and that it is only when given in excessive amounts that it will be harmful. Think of bread like fast food for ducks. It is a ‘sometimes’ food and 1 slice of bread is the equivalent of you feasting on half a pizza!
It is important to note that feeding ducks is not the same as feeding chickens.
National Geographic wrote about how bread can harm ducks here.
What do ducks eat?
Most experts advocate letting nature look after the birds, and recommend NOT feeding any birds anywhere unless they are in captivity. Learning this, we have reduced our duck feeding to a once a year occasion at Daylesford Lake in Victoria. Our next question was what do ducks eat?
Our local ducks are very boisterous, mostly with a flock made up of animals that have been released (non-native). Knowing what we can safely feed the birds has reassured us that we are supporting healthy animals.
Rather than reaching for a loaf of bread before we go to the lake, we usually open the freezer and grab a bag of corn and peas. It is often defrosted by the time we reach the lake and then feed it out to the ducks. They also love bok choy (in fact, all of our birds at home LOVE bok choy!), grapes (halved so to prevent choking), most grains, cooked rice, and commercial duck feed.
List of food to feed ducks:
- Peas
- Corn
- non-citrus fruit
- Bok Choy (cut up)
- Grapes (halved)
- Rolled oats
- Cooked rice
- Most grains
- Zucchini (chopped)
- Mealworms – possibly their favourite
- Commercial duck food
When feeding the ducks, it is essential to STOP feeding them if they aren’t eating! Introducing leftover food to the waterway is not a good idea for the environment.
We’ve also learned that it is important to space the time between feeding ducks – you don’t want them to become reliant on your feeds as they can become aggressive and we can also impact the ecosystem further, something we want to avoid.
Where to feed ducks near me
When the kids were little and we needed to find an activity I’d for places where to feed ducks near me. Here is a little resource we’ve pulled together for spots around Australian capital cities.
Please make sure to check local rules around duck feeding. Usually, there are signs to let you know if they prefer you not to feed the animals.
If you have other great places to add – please let us know!
Where to feed ducks in Adelaide
Visiting Adelaide with the kids was one of our best trips to date. There was so much to see and do and we could ALWAYS find parking. What we did omit from that trip was feeding ducks, but now with this resource we will know where to go next time.
- Apex Park Wetlands – located off Burbridge Road, West Beach
- LG Perriam Memorial Oval – Saint Peters Street, Saint Peters
- St Peters Billabong – 12 Eighth Ave, St Peters
- Wittunga Botanic Gardens – Shepherds Hill Rd, Blackwood
- Woorabinda Lake Reserve, Woorabinda Dr, Stirling
Click here to check out our BEST things to do in Adelaide with kids
Where to feed ducks in Brisbane
We can’t wait to head back to Brisbane. In preparation for our trip, I have been busy collecting places for us to visit. On our list are places to feed ducks.
- Anzac Park – 30 Wool Street, Toowong
- Capalaba Regional Park – Pittwin Road, Capalaba
- Centenary Lakes – Caboolturet
- Doug Larson Park – 41 Logan Street, Beenleigh
- Hilliards Creek – Starkey Street, Ormiston
- Kedron Brook precinct – Jean Street Entrance, Kedron Brook, Grange
- Minnippi Parklands – Stanton Rd West, Tingalpa
- Mount Cotton Community Park – 51-63 Valley Way, Mount Cotton
- Pine Rivers Park – 125 Gympie Road, Strathpine
Where to feed ducks in Darwin
Darwin is a little different to the other capital cities in that many of the waterways are also home to the apex predator – the crocodile. I don’t want to be encouraging anyone to head out and feed the ducks unless you know full well that it is croc friendly.
Instead, why not feed the fish at Doctors Gully!
Check out our BEST things to do in Darwin with kids resource
Where to feed ducks in Hobart
My own experience with feeding ducks started when I was a toddler in Hobart and my mum would take me to feed them in Cygnet (I think). But where would you head these days?
- Apex Park – Esplanade, Huonville
- Duck Park – Balmoral Road, Kingston Beach
- Richmond Village Green – Cnr Bridge & Franklin Streets, Richmond
- Simmons Park – Esplanade, Lindisfarne
Click here to check out our BEST things to do in Tasmania
Where to feed ducks in Melbourne and Victoria
Just outside Melbourne, in the township of Daylesford, my children enjoyed their very first duck feeding experience. We return to Lake Daylesford every year for nostalgia. Melbourne itself has a number of places to feed ducks.
- Albert Park, Melbourne. Request that you do not feed the ducks
- Caulfield Park – corner of Balaclava and Hawthorn Roads. Request that you do not feed the ducks.
- D.Laver Reserve – Darling
- Lake Daylesford – Daylesford
- Queens Park – Corner Mt Alexander Rd and Kellaway Avenue, Melbourne
- Rivers of Yarramba – 28 Kurrak Road Yarrambat. You can buy duck food from the Cafe and use the duck feeding platform
- The Waterwheel – 3400 Warburton Hwy Warburton. Buy duck food for $1 at the Waterwheel Centre
Click here to check out our BEST things to do in Melbourne with kids
Where to feed ducks in Perth
We love Perth and hope to visit in the next year so we can catch up with our family and the kid’s Godparents. Of course, we need to know where the best place is to feed the ducks!
In Perth, the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) Parks and Wildlife Service is urging people to refrain from feeding native animals, following concerns about the number of visitors feeding animals in national parks. I am unsure which parts have domestic ducks to feed.
Click here to check out our BEST things to do in Perth with Kids
Where to feed ducks in Sydney
If you are in Sydney, here are some places you can head to see the ducks with the kids.
- Auburn Botanic Gardens — Chiswick Rd & Chisholm Rd, Auburn
- Bicentennial Park – Australia Ave, Sydney Olympic Park
- Camellia Gardens – Kareena Rd, Caringbah South (just behind the gardens)
- Centennial Parklands – prefer that you don’t feed the ducks
- Fagan Park – 38-48 Arcadia Road, Galston
- Jenkins Hill Picnic Area, Lane Cove National Park – Lady Game Drive, Chatswood West
- Jim Walsh Park – Graham Ave Eastwood
- Macquarie University – Mars Creek, Talavera Road, Macquarie Park
- Maluga Passive Park – Woods Rd, Birrong
- Parramatta Park – Pitt Street & Macquarie Street, Parramatta
- Putney Hill, Lardelli Park – 18 Bennelong Way, Ryde
- Riverglade Reserve – Waruda Place, Huntleys Cove
Click here to check out our best things to do in Sydney with kids
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Wildlife Experiences in Australia
We love animals and on every single trip we take we look for opportunities to learn about the local wildlife.
Head to our animal encounters page for links to a plethora of experiences.
I really respect the message here, but the best option really is to not feed them at all.
No food that we can provide matches their natural diet. The healthiest food we can give them still doesn’t provide the same nutrients they get from dabbling.
Most importantly, feeding any food encourages a dependency on humans and reduces natural behaviour in native ducks.
It also supports introduced species. Introduced Mallards are a big issue in Australia (Tasmania in particular) and being larger and more tolerant of people, push out natives in areas that they’re fed. They’re the white and/or green headed ducks that are most commonly fed. They are closely related to the native pacific black duck and can interbreed, to the point that PBDs are rare in areas where feral ducks are fed. In New Zealand, they’re considered to be critically endangered, mainly due to this hybridisation impact.
The best way to enjoy ducks is to enjoy watching them do their own thing, free from depending on us. It’s also fun trying to identify and learn abyout different species, especially visitors like freckled ducks
Thank you for this information. I had no idea that introduced mallards are an issue here in Australia.
I love birdwatching, so I love the idea of trying to guess which bird is which. In my area, we mostly have wood ducks!
No worries! It’s much better for the ducks and more rewarding for us. It’s looking like Pacific Black Ducks are much rarer than we thought in many areas because of mallard cross breeding.
There’s also just no way we can provide anything like the wild food of native ducks. Most of them rely on insects and some even need fish/frogs/crustaceans/microscopic algae etc that we can’t provide with grains and vegetables.
It would be extremely appreciated if the Tasmanian locations could be removed. Councils are currently working on education initiatives and more engaging signage in all of these areas in their efforts to protect native ducks and control mallard numbers which are getting out of control.