In my regular transit through Urban Dictionary I encounter Word for the Day: ‘[anatidaephobia] is a pervasive, irrational fear that one is being watched by a duck. The anatidaephobic individual fears that no matter where they are or what they are doing, a duck watches.’ I suppose it’s a change from being watched night and day by the intelligence services, or my algorithm. Greek ‘anatidae’ includes geese and swans, and though I’m sure I’m not being watched by a swan, maybe I have pardalotephobia, as they visit our windows daily, watching me as if I am a person of interest.
It is only after finishing these 100-words that I later googled ‘anatidaephobia’,
only to find that the word was invented by Gary Larson of ‘The Far Side’. It
helps explain the Larson duck in his cartoons, who is very different indeed
from the Leunig duck. This also reveals a weakness of the Urban Dictionary,
which is invaluable for definitions of every kind of new word, but not good at
editorial sourcing. An example of where innocent ‘anatidaephobia’ can take you
next is found here: https://www.verywellmind.com/is-anatidaephobia-a-real-condition-4767076
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