A female mallard displaying to a mate

I was fascinated by this female mallard as she and her mate seemed to be displaying to each other. She flew up onto this fallen tree trunk at the side of the canal and preened herself. She suddenly took flight but only nearly vertically as of to look over the nearby shrubs and ivy which acted like a hedge.

After landing beside the drake in the water she then returned to the same spot on the branch. I was only a few yards away but on the other bank of the canal, so I didn't seemed to be threatening. 

The flying pictures are amazing as they show her wonderfully coloured feathers with wings both outstretched and then folded in flight. But it was rather dark so this portrait between flights is as always a clearer image, which in the end I prefer.