If Your Kids Are Doing This They’re Likely Harming Tyler, TX Ducks

You likely did it. I know I did it as a kid, I took my kids to do it just a few weeks ago at Faulkner Park here in Tyler, TX. It's never even crossed my mind that feeding ducks and geese could be harmful, but it is and this actually makes sense.

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The bread and crackers we throw out to them is basically void of any nutritional value and as it turns out it's just as bad for them, even more so, than it is for us humans.

Here's what Reconnect with Nature has to say on the subject:

What may seem like a fun and harmless pastime is actually bad for waterfowl, because the bread and crackers we love to feed them is essentially junk food — high in carbohydrates, low in protein and lacking the nutrients they would get in their natural diet, according to the Wildlife Center of Virginia(Opens in a new window).

And just like humans who eat too much junk food, ducks and geese can suffer dire consequences when they eat too much bread and not enough of the natural grains, aquatic plants, insects and other small invertebrates they would feast on if we didn't so love feeding them bread.

Eating too much of human bread and crackers can lead to a lot of problems including potentially to a condition called "angel wing," this is where their wings become deformed because the carpal joint grows incorrectly. This affects their feathers and ability to fly.

The website also points out that when the waterfowl fill up on bread they tend to forgo more traditionally and healthy foods they need to survive.