We spoke to the Instagram account posting Lancaster ducks daily to find out WHY

‘The ducks make people happy’


The ducks are a staple of any Lancs student’s experience, and the fact that there are Instagram pages dedicated to them shows that many students idolise them, and understand how the ducks automatically come to mind whenever someone thinks of Lancaster Uni. It can be difficult to decide which of the many pages you should follow, so we decided to speak to one of them.

From stealing our Greggs, to being the perfect Valentine’s date, the ducks are often seen strutting their stuff around campus. Luckily, @lancasterducksdaily has captured some of their beauty.

Why ducks, and what is their importance for Lancaster Uni students?

There are many reasons as to why this account is dedicated to ducks; the account’s owners told us: “ducks are everywhere on Lancaster Uni’s campus and people love to see them. The ducks are a nice reminder of the uni itself.

“Whenever someone thinks of Lancs uni, they automatically think of the ducks. This just shows how important the ducks are on campus. People just love to see the ducks, especially after a stressful day of lectures and uni work in general, the ducks just make people happy.”

@Lancastersducksdaily added: “Everyone has just accepted the fact that you are bound to see ducks anywhere you go on campus, I don’t think that any other uni can say that they have resident ducks on their campus, can they?”

How has coronavirus affected your page and how have you overcome this?

“People send in pictures of the ducks and I have a folder of the many photos I have taken of the ducks over the many years, so it would be difficult for me to run out of pictures.”

The account’s owners said that due to Covid, they are “unable to go out and physically take pictures of the ducks” but thankfully, many of their followers send in their pictures of the ducks that can be featured on the page. “It’s like a little community we have on the page, people are always sending in pictures and I’m spoiled for choice as to which pictures to use.”

Where is your favourite place to take pictures of the ducks?

“The water near the Bonnie steps. The fact that there is a little lake there guarantees that ducks will be there which is a perfect opportunity to add to the page.”

@Lancasterducksdaily said added “especially when the sun is shining, and the light reflecting off the water is so beautiful, it’s something I can’t resist taking a picture of.

“Although the ducks can be a bit of a pain sometimes, I just love going to the water near Bonnie steps and taking as many pictures as I can. There are always quite a few ducks there too so it is nice to get quite a few pictures.”

What advice would you give to someone wanting to start a page of the same theme?

“Take as many pics as you can wherever you see them, in case you need spare photos for a rainy day”. They also suggested to “try and get some help”, so you have a wide bank of images to choose from when deciding to post on insta.

@Lancasterducksdaily then said: “Try not to run the page by yourself as trying to post pictures of the ducks everyday can be stressful for one person. Maybe try allocating a day per person, that way it is up to other people to post on their allocated day.”

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