Mallard

Anas platyrhynchosOrder: ANSERIFORMES Family: Geese and Ducks (Anatidae)

Codes: Common Name: MALL Scientific Name: ANAPLA ITIS Taxonomic No.: 175063

Mallard: The male Mallard has a gray body and chestnut-brown breast, green head, and white neck ring. The tail is black with distinct white edges and two curled black feathers.

Birdman Mel's Backyard Tips

Overview

Mallard: Medium-sized dabbling duck with gray body and chestnut-brown breast. The head is green and neck ring is white. Bill is yellow-green. Wing speculum is white-bordered metallic purple-blue. The tail is dark with distinct white edges and two curled black feathers. Legs and feet are orange.

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.

Topo Map: Duck-like Body

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"kwek-kwek-kwek"

Interesting Facts

The Mallard is the ancestor of all domestic duck breeds, except the Muscovy Duck.

Mallards are the most abundant and widespread of all waterfowl; every year millions are harvested by hunters with little effect on their numbers. The greatest threat to mallards is loss of habitat, but they readily adapt to human disturbances.

They frequently breed with domestic ducks, producing a large variety of patterns and colors. They also hybridize with wild species such as the closely related American Black Duck and even occasionally with Northern Pintails

A group of mallards has many collective nouns, including a "battling", "daggle", "doppling", "lute", and "sword" of mallards.

Bird Term Glossary

Author

Gary Owen Dick

Related Birds

Northern Pintail
American Wigeon
Northern Shoveler
Red-breasted Merganser
Wood Duck
American Black Duck
Common Merganser
Gadwall
Eurasian Wigeon
Mottled Duck
Spot-billed Duck

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Mallard

● Song: "kwek-kwek-kwek"

● Foraging & Feeding: Mallard: Dabbles in shallow freshwater for vegetation, insects, mollusks, and crustaceans. Often forages for food in fields and woodlots.

● Breeding & 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.

● 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.

Flight Pattern

Swift direct flight with strong wing beats.

● Range & 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.

^BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester

^PopulationCommon to abundant

^MigrationMigratory

^Weight38.4 Ounces

Duck-like Body

Breast

The upper front part of a bird.

Speculum

The brightly colored area on the wing (secondaries of the wing) on several duck species.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America

Mallard

Birdman Mel's Backyard Tips

Overview

Range and Habitat

Topo Map: Duck-like Body

Listen to Call

Voice Text

Interesting Facts

Bird Term Glossary

Author

Related Birds

Mallard

Flight Pattern