The unflappable male paradise shelduck duo have made it a habit over the past couple of days and have apparently acquired a taste for freshly-cooked chips.
Yesterday, the birds again confidently claimed their territory in much of the eastern side of George St between Hanover and Frederick Sts.
Zoologist Anthony Harris was puzzled by the behaviour of the two birds, which had joined forces outside the breeding season.
"Paradise ducks in heaven," he added with a smile.
"It’s very remarkable, I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s unprecedented," he said about the behaviour.
Mr Harris is honorary curator of entomology at the Otago Museum and has long been the Otago Daily Times Nature File columnist.
Paradise ducks usually avoided close human contact and busy built-up areas.
However, these two ducks could have been reared from ducklings by humans, given their confidence around people, he said.
Mr Harris believed it was the same two ducks that had been recently seen waddling on the University Union lawn and at the Otago Farmers Market last Saturday.
