I have in my minds eye, a pair of hooded mergansers for a wall mount. The drake would be setting/standing preening, so that the hood would be nicely displayed. A small piece of plexie glass or lexan would be part of the habitat, as to represent the surface of the water. The hen would be diving, chasing a small fish or two, and attached to a piece of drift wood that is the hanging structure.
I see the hen, head down, neck stretched, feet back, mouth openned and in a somewhat curved position. The question is, would the body actually need to be modified in this curved position, or would positioning the tail, feet, neck and head be correct? Does a ducks body curve much side to side?
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Next time you skin a duck bend the body. You will see the joint that allows it to bend to the side. Not very much bend though. That is why ducks standing on one leg and scratching their head need to bend a little.
and can bend at that point. Just think of a duck as a man with mega sized pecks. They basically have the same skeletal structure as any vertebrate. Obviously there isn't much flexibility (twist) in the upper back but the vertebrae do allow the duck to bend and twist.