General
Mallard: Medium-sized dabbling duck with gray body and chestnut-brown breast. Head is green and neck ring is white. Bill is yellow-green. Wing speculum is white-bordered metallic purple-blue. Tail is dark with distinct white edges and two curled black feathers. Legs and feet are orange. Female is mottled brown with mostly white tail, has a brown-saddled orange bill, and no curled tail feathers. Juvenile resembles female but has duller bill. Eclipse male is similar to female but is grayer overall and has olive-green bill. Hybridizes with Black Ducks, Mottled Ducks, and domestic ducks.
Range and Habitat
Mallard Duck: Breeds from Alaska and Quebec south to southern California, Virginia, Texas, and northern Mexico. Spends winters throughout the U.S. and south to Central America and the West Indies. Preferred habitats include ponds, lakes, marshes, small river bends, bays, ditches, and city ponds.
Breeding and Nesting
Mallard: Five to fourteen green or gray buff eggs are laid in a down-lined nest, usually built on the ground, sometimes far from water; occasionally nests in trees. Incubation ranges from 26 to 30 days and is carried out by the female.
Foraging and Feeding
Mallard: Dabbles in shallow freshwater for vegetation, insects, mollusks, and crustaceans. Often forages for food in fields and woodlots.
Readily Eats
Cracked Corn
Vocalization
Mallard: Sounds a double note and makes a low, reedy "kwek, kwek, kwek."
Similar Species
Mallard: Northern Shoveler has a long, dark bill, white breast, and chestnut-brown brown sides. Common and Red-breasted mergansers have narrow red bills and head crests.