Domestic Ducks

THE FOCUS OF THIS SITE www.animal.photos IS WILD ANIMALS RATHER THAN DOMESTIC. SIMILARLY, THE FOCUS OF THE WATERFOWL SECTION IS WILD DUCKS NOT DOMESTIC BREEDS. HOWEVER SEVERAL DOMESTIC BREEDS ARE ILLUSTRATED HERE PARTLY TO ASSIST IN IDENTIFYING SUCH BREEDS WHEN ENCOUNTERED IN A DOMESTIC OR ESCAPEE SITUATION AND PARTLY TO ASSIST IN RECOGNISING HYBRIDS OF DOMESTIC AND WILD BREEDS (although the latter is a specialist field in itself). THIS IS NOT INTENDED TO BE A COMPLETE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE.

Most domestic breeds are descended from Mallards and bred for meat or eggs rather than as pets or ornamental ducks. Many breeds are white with yellow or orange bills and orange legs.

Some retain a degree of wild Mallard colouring. Most drakes retain the curled up tail feathers of the Mallard drake. The domestic Muscovy (and its hybrids with White-winged and Comb Ducks in some regions of South America and the Far East) is the only domestic duck not descended from Mallards.

Rouen Ducks are ultra heavy domestic ducks bred for their meat (the above ducks are for display only). Their Mallard ancestry is obvious both on male (left, centre) and female (right).

Related to the Rouen is another French domestic breed, the Duclair. The mallard-looking male has a white throat patch or chest and is also called the Bibbed duck. The body is mid to dark brown. Those shown above are actually feral. Females are generally pale. Both can have wholly white plumage.

Aylesbury Ducks are also bred for their white meat and soft plumage (the above ducks are for display only).

Unlike the heavy ducks bred for meat, Call Ducks were bred to be small and noisy. Their purpose was as decoys to "call" wild ducks out on to the water to be shot by hunters. Many today are purely ornamental. The photo above right shows the curled tail feathers from the Mallard drake.

Some Call Ducks revert towards their Mallard lineage plumage.

Abacot Rangers (Hooded Rangers) showing the Mallard blue wing "speculum".

Thought to be a Pekin duck.

White Campbell.

Khaki Campbell hybrid.

Khaki Campbell hybrid.

Campbell ducks have Mallard, Rouen and Runner ancestry and are bred in "white", "khaki" and "dark" colours.

Khaki Campbell females. Female Campbells are prolific egg layers, rivalling chickens.

The Mallard influence on these hybrid Khaki Campbell is clear.

Blue Swedish, also called Swedish Blue (on right).

Breeds of domestic duck likely to be found in UK include:

Abacot Ranger (also Hooded Ranger, above), Ancona, Australian Spotted, Aylesbury, Bali (crested Indian Runner), Black East Indies (see link below), Blue Swedish (also Swedish Blue), Buff Orpington (also Buff or Orpington), Call (above), Campbells (Dark, Khaki), Cayuga (large version of Black East Indies), Coast, Crested (see below), Duclair, Golden Cascade, Hook Bill, Indian Runner (below), Magpie, Minature Appleyard, Mule (Muscovy/Mallard-type cross), Muscovy (below), Pekin, Rouen/Rouen Clair, Saxony, Silky, Silver Appleyard, Silver Bantam, Welsh Harlequin.

Links:

wild Mallards

domestic/Mallard hybrids

Silver Appleyard

Indian Runner

Black East Indies

Crested ducks

Muscovy