Why people are hiding rubber ducks on cruise ships

Are these people on quack?
Forget swingers taking over the cruise lines. The real secret of the seas, according to cruisers, are the treasure troves of rubber ducks passengers hidden onboard the vacation ships for others to find — and the idea isn’t floating well with some, with one line even clamping down on the weird practice.
Reported to have started as a fun, Easter egg-esque idea dreamed up by a young girl named Abby Davis, the tradition has turned into a rite of passage on board — and even a lucrative business, with the plastic playthings being sold at up to $25 a tail.
Cruise ship passengers bizarrely hide ducks on ships as a fun ritual. Getty Images
There are YouTube tutorials for the best places to hide them — and private Facebook groups for bath time buddy enthusiasts as well.
“Our goal is to see how far our Ducks will travel and where their journey might take them,” the Facebook group Cruising Ducks announced on its page.
Some overzealous travelers pack loads of ducks for their cruises. Reddit / @OoGhiJ_MIQtxxXA
“Keep or hide, you decide, but please post your Ducks travels here so everyone can enjoy.”
According to some critics, the tradition has gone somewhat off the deep end lately — with one person revealing they paid for a carry-on just for their ducks, a Reddit post revealed.
“You’ve got a ducking problem,” one commenter hurled back.
Another superfan showed a video of themselves 3D printing a whole nest of ducks for an upcoming cruise.
“”Please don’t do it,” one cruiser responded.
“I hate to be a killjoy, but there’s really no reason for it. Just go on the cruise and enjoy what’s already there,” they urged.
“We see them frequently on Royal ships. Pretty much anywhere there is a flat or flattish surface. Near elevators, outside the theater. Mostly in the more traveled areas, not inside of venues or lounges,” they wrote in a separate thread.
Others worried about the littering aspect — and the idea of buying endless amounts of the cheap toy and leaving them all over.
Though some cruise lines wink at the practice — a Carnival rep told Thrillist the duck hunting trend is “completely guest-driven” — some have had their feathers ruffled over the strange trend.
Disney Cruise Line isn’t so crazy about the Donald Duck wannabes, for example — even adopting a policy that limits their placement on board, according to Thrillist.
“Guests cannot hide things, such as rubber ducks, in staterooms or public areas on the ship,” the directive stated.
They are free, however, to bring them on board.