The ducks are migrating back to Echo Park Lake, the ones who left for summer vacation. A week ago, the black speckled duck was back as was the tan and white speckled one. Today, my daughter and I saw an unusual black duck with a strange plume on its head and a white spot on the plume. It shared company with a white duck with clearly defined brown patches. There was also a duck that looked something like a Siamese cat, with brown color points accenting a tan body; and there was a gorgeous one with silvery feathers fading in and out of brown. I might have more ducks to report except my daughter wanted to get away from the birds after we were mugged by a pair of smallish white geese, who nipped at the hem of my pants and bit my leg. We had been feeding them bread when they decided they weren't getting it fast enough, hopped out of the water and charged us. I had to resort to stamping my feet -- to the horror of an onlooker, one of those perpetual park flaneurs, who happened on the scene just at that moment, having missed the mugging -- and my daughter was screaming, so we left the ducks and went to the playground. The Canada geese were innocent in this scene, though I must say that last week I saw about nine of them surrounding a pair of picnickers, even as the birds kept a cautious distance.