An aggressive Muscovy duck has been terrorizing a neighborhood in Cape Coral, Florida, attacking residents and drawing blood. The feral fowl protected duck, now called “Jimmy“, bit resident James Sepulveda while he was sitting on his porch, inflicting a bloody wound and alarming the community.
Sepulveda, a resident of the neighborhood for nearly three decades, recounted the attack: “I sit on my porch, 7 to 7:30 at this time of the year to catch a sunset, you know, some sun, and I had my eyes closed, Sepulveda told Fox 4. “All of a sudden, I felt a jab on my hand and it was bleeding.”
Another resident, Richard Guy, also had a frightening encounter when the duck flared its wings and approached him menacingly. “I stood up and I made some noises, thinking it would go away, duck, you know, next thing I know, its wings come out you know like it’s going to attack me,” he recounted.
The Muscovy duck is an invasive species native to Texas and parts of Latin America, but it is protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Locals expressed frustration and concern over the attacks. “They should be gotten rid of,” Sepulveda added.
Animal rescuer Mark Quadrozzi from “Remarkable Rescues” captured Jimmy and relocated him to a sanctuary with other Muscovy ducks.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) noted that Muscovy ducks “are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, but the US Fish and Wildlife Service has issued a Control Order (USFWS 50 CFR 21.54) allowing control of Muscovy ducks and their nests and eggs in areas outside their natural range.”
This order permits the removal of the aggressive waterfowl within specific guidelines. These include “humane methods of live capture” such as nets and cages, or “by use of a firearm on private property during daylight hours with landowner permission.”
Sepulveda, reflecting on the ordeal, expressed relief at Jimmy’s removal: “I’m happy they’re getting rid of the ducks in the area because they are vicious.”
