10,000 ducks are being released through a tiny gate to ‘clean’ rice paddies

A rice crop on a farm in Nakhon Pathom, Thailand, was harvested, so it’s now time to send in the ducks to do their job! The 10,000 ducks are released from their pen to funnel out of the tiny gate into the flooded fields where they devour pests such as snails who hide in the rice stubble.

From the amazing drone footage, they look like sand flowing through an hourglass into the open fields. This has long been a tradition in the area and other parts of the region which they call “ped lai thoong” meaning “field chasing ducks.”

“The benefit (for the breeder) is that we reduce costs to feed the ducks,” said duck breeder Apiwat Chalermklin. “And in return, for the rice farmers the ducks help eat pests from the farm and the farmers can reduce the use of chemicals and pesticides.”

These Khaki Campbell ducks, a British breed, are released on the fields after 20 days in nursery where they will be raised on the move for the next couple of months. They will then be returned to the farm to produce eggs after a job well done on the rice paddies! 🙂