Ducks swim in canal near Mai Chau
Ducks swim in a canal near Mai Chau. These brown, white, and black ducks with yellow bills are a domesticated variety raised by local rice farmers.
In many parts of Southeast Asia, farmers raise ducks and farm wet-rice fields in a mutually beneficial, or symbiotic, relationship. Duck droppings fertilize the water in which the rice grows. Ducks also eat the algae and other weeds that grow near the young rice plants. The ducks are herded away from the ripe rice when it is ready for harvest. The farmers ultimately eat both the mature rice and ducks.
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