Behavioural considerations are another consideration to take into account when holding a captive population of freckled ducks. The most important of these considerations is the possibility of imprinting on a subject other than the mother. Imprinting is an instinctual phenomenon that occurs early on in life whereby the juvenile establishes a long lasting behavioural response to the parent (or another animal, person or thing that is present during the crucial imprinting period). Imprinting on human keepers is a serious consideration, as hatchlings require the mother to learn important behaviour traits—including vocalisations, feeding, and other important attributes.